From Michael to Malaki
by Atlanticfire
Summary: A cold, calculating , scarred orphan, Michael Hanes dreams of freedom, but after a strange event he gets more than he could imagine. With a hole for a heart and a chance to reinvent himself, he begins his new life with none other then the Straw Hat Pirates... But where will it end?
1. Chapter 1: What the Hell!

Guide-

* * *

"_For thoughts"_

* * *

**For actions and Zanpakuto calling**

* * *

[Location, POV]

Disclaimer: Don't own One Piece just the OCs sadly.

Chapter 1: What the Hell!

[Annapolis Maryland, Michael's POV]

_**Beep! Beep! Beep! Beep!**_

_Damn_

I sat up to the annoying beep of my alarm, resetting the timer I stand up and walk to the mirror to check my appearance. I scowl at myself, my Cold steel eyes piercing through me like paper, my disheveled onyx hair reaching just above my eyes. I flex my muscle scanning over my tall and thin but decently muscular frame, my 4 pack tightening my skin. I trace the tattoo below my left eye, a gray serpent going down to my chin, then I trace the tattoo on my right arm recognizing it as Scar's Alchemic arm.

Turning around I grab the nearest set of clothing and check the calendar, "_Saturday, I've got kendo later"_. I was always a quick learner being both gifted and cursed with perfect photographic memory. I could see and learn virtually anything it's what made me so smart memorizing textbooks and equations, the same applied to kendo scanning movements with my dead eyes.

Since most people don't like me because of how I am I can barely stay in one home for more than a couple weeks, though I've been here longer than usual. Debating whether or not to get some time on One Piece or exercise, I sit at the computer feeling today is just one of those lazy days. Starting the most recent episode at Fishman Island, _"Wish I could join it would be awesome just meeting luffy let alone his cr-"_, only to be cut off by a call.

"Michael breakfast is ready come on down", I recognize the call as my current stepsister Alice.

"OK be there in a minute" I call in my normal cold voice. Slipping on a white t-shirt and gray combat leggings, I slip out my door and down the stairs, looking to my left I stare at my current family for a moment. Alice's hazel eyes locked onto to me with what seemed like pity, she's about 9 years old but is a very kind and caring person. I continue scanning over her small, thin figure and her blond hair, finished I sit at my respective seat across from my current father. Deafening silence ensues after my awkward appearance until my 'Father' asks me.

"So Michael what are you doing today?" He asked of genuine curiosity.

"I have kendo later other than that there is nothing" I deadpanned my steel eyes boring holes into him.

"Why don't you hang out with your friends?" He asked, he had read my files and felt sad just thinking about my life thus far, I wanted solitude but he wanted me to have friends.

"What friends?" I deadpanned but not without lacing in a bit of sorrow accidentally, making his 'Father' flinch at the tone.

Instantly regretting what I said I decide it best to leave right now before it gets any worse "Excuse me but I am not hungry this morning I'll be in my room." I stood up and left, walking as quickly as possible up the stairs into my room.

I sat on my bed until I remembered what I was doing earlier. Standing up I walk to my computer and start the episode again.

Eiichiro Oda's masterpiece was one of the few things that remained constant for me. Mainly because it relayed hope for a better life but for me it was an escape albeit temporary it actually made me smile. Luffy's and the crews antics, the will to fight for there dream, it was truly admirable to see how they all had there dream to achieve. Although I had never truly had a dream since becoming an orphan, I wished strongly that I could be there to protect luffy and the crew through the hardships that damaged them permanently. Luffy's brother, Zoro taking Luffy's pain, Igarams sacrifice, etc. I would willingly take it all on myself if I could only be there.

Lost in my musing I didn't even realize the screen had gone black and tendrils were crawling out of the screen until it had engulfed my waist and right arm. Eyes shooting open he realized what was happening,_" Damn how the hell did I not notice this."_

The tendrils now engulfing everything but my left arm and head I continued to struggle in vain as it covered I arm and neck. The last thing I saw was eerie black spreading across my vision; _"Shit this sucks."_ was his last thought as unconsciousness claimed him.

[?, Michael's POV]

_Where Am I?_

_Why can't I move?_

I was somewhere but nowhere. Complete darkness felt as though it was piercing me, _"Maybe I'm dead or som-". _He was cut off when a horrible pain shot through my abdomen. It felt like hours but it stopped, I wanted to reach the spot of the pain but was paralyzed, at mercy of this unknown force. Suddenly I saw I small barely noticeable light I reached with everything in and I felt the light growing. Until suddenly I could see everything, everything was blurred and my back hurt like hell but I was alive.

Surveying my surroundings barely able to open my eyes the last thing I saw was a noticeable patch…

…Of blue?


	2. Chapter 2: The start of a radical change

Guide-

* * *

"_For thoughts"_

* * *

**For actions and Zanpakuto calling**

* * *

[Location, POV]

* * *

Disclaimer: Don't own One Piece just the OCs sadly.

Chapter 2: This New World

[Cocoyasi Village, Nojiko POV]

I was picking some mikans out in the field wondering where Nami was right now. Ever since she took the burden of paying Arlong 100,000,000 Beli she rarely ever talked to me unless she wanted to put away more beli. Although I understood it still hurt knowing that I was no longer significant in her life as before. I shook away those thoughts and continued picking until I heard a whistling sound.

Turning around I saw no one was there but the sound got louder

"_What is that?" _I thought as she looked up eyes bulging out of her sockets when she saw something falling right at her at cannon speed.

"EEEEHHHH?!" I yelled as I ran as far as possible.

**BAAAAMMMM!**

The resulting shockwave threw me like a rag doll 5ft forward landing on my face. Spitting out the dirt I turned myself over with a moan, sitting up and brushing off the dirt I look to where the object fell. There was a massive crater about 15 feet in diameter and pretty deep to. Standing up and stretching my incredibly sore limbs I walk to the crater.

And there it is.

'EEEEHHHH?!" for the second time today I am scared out of my wits when I see not an object but a man lay stark naked in the center of the crater with…

two swords and a bag?

Observing him closely I notice there isn't a single scratch on him,_" What the hell is he?"_. I walk over and stare at him for a moment playing with the idea of helping him or waiting for him to wake up.

Opting to help the unlucky bastard I lay a hand on his wrist feeling for a pulse and there it is beating madly. I look him over noticing his skin is paled not enough to notice but if you look closely you could see it. Looking to his face I see a tattoo of a grey snake slithering down to his chin, its fangs poised in position to strike. I traced my right index finger down the ink scales and look to his arms which are sprawled to his sides. His right arm has a much larger tattoo than his face, multiple symbols she doesn't recognize interlocking with one another and a few words such as 'Terra' written in between some of them. The tattoo ends just below his shoulder blade.

Checking his chest and waist I glide a hand over him feeling his thin but chiseled form, his chest heave up and down until my hand abruptly go through his abdomen. Eyes snapping to where my hand was I was left speechless because…

There was a hole in his abdomen!

Freaking out I immediately jumped back and turned the other way, _"He has to be dead… but he is still breathing."_. Taking a quick glance at him he still lay there unmoving except the rhythmic rise and fall of his chest.

Slowly walking back I reach out a hand and take his wrist again doing the same with the other hand. Pulling him in leaving the swords and the bag behind, I take him to the table. With a heave I barely raise him to the table top; I turn around and grab a thin white sheet from my closet. Still unnerved by the hole in him I focus on his face while spreading the sheet along his waist. I mused _"I wonder what hap-"_ but was abruptly cut off by a door slamming open and a shout.

"NOJIKO-SAN! Are you here?! Are you alright?! I saw a meteor falling towards you as quick as I could!" The gruff but urgent voice called

Whipping my head around I see Genzo with his stitched up face stretched tight in worry "its fine but I need your help with this." I replied.

"Who is that?" She stared at him for a moment before replying.

"NANI?" He facefaulted clearly not believing his ears.

I sighed knowing this was going to be hard to explain. She sat down at the table with the unconscious man and so did he. I explained everything that had happened from picking some mikans to the man falling and the 2 swords and bag outside.

"So you mean to tell me that he fell from the sky?" He asked, I nodded

"Without a single scratch on him?" Another nod

"With 2 perfectly intact swords and a bag?" Another nod

"Oh wait there is something else." I took the white sheet and pulled it low enough to show the hole in his abdomen.

"NANI?" He shouted falling from his sheet baffled as to how he was breathing.

"WH…what is that how is he breathing!" he exclaimed I shrugged

"Your guess is as good as mine." I replied as though it were a normal conversation.

"So… what do you want to do with him?" He replied gaining his sense back.

"I say we wait for him to wake before anything, and get him some clothes will ya don't want him walking round naked." He nodded.

"I'll be back with some clothes for him." He stared at me for a moment. "We should check his bag to see if has any clothes."

I sat there for a moment realizing he was right. I nodded and we both stood up to do are own tasks. Returning to the crater I grabbed the bag, heaving it over my shoulder I place it next to the table and return for the swords.

I scan the blades that lay on the ground incredibly clean after falling in a crater. One is a small Jian, opening its black sheath it revealed a blade with a deep onyx color. Its guard is a skull with a black crystal orb in its mouth and small skeletal wings on either side of its head. With a red hilt its bottom is flat though.

The other blade is completely different. A 5-foot shining silver blade about 4-inches across, its shining golden guard. The hilt was red with gold rectangles going down, there was no sheath.

I dragged the massive blade and it's smaller relative to the table as well sitting them up against the wall. With a sigh I sit down on the floor and grabbed the bag it had a little weight though not as heavy as the blades. I opened it curious as to what this curious man bought with him.

Reaching a hand in I retrieved what looked like an egg though it was black with red spots. Next I found about 4 rolls of bandages. She took the rest out spreading it on the floor I scanned the items before me. A black strap likely for that massive blade, along with a pitch black cloak with red straps, a silver forehead protector, some black combat boots and black silk gloves.

The last 3 items were a black silk cap, a dark blue mask probably for covering the bottom half of his face. The last item was a set of large blue leggings worn by connecting two large green straps.

"_Got some weird taste… but he does have a hole in his gut."_ I thought

I glanced at his face wondering what his eyes looked like. Taking a hand and slowly raising to his left eye I lightly placed my right index finger and thumb on his upper and lower eyelid.

Opening his eye I stared at steel grey eyes though unconscious his eyes still pierced her like knives. In her musing she hadn't even realized his other eye had opened.

Hoped you liked the story folks I'll try to update weekly but no promises flames and critiques are all welcome.


	3. Chapter 3: I'm a what! Fishman training!

Disclaimer: Don't own One Piece

[Cocoyasi Village, Michael]

There I was, eye to eye with Nojiko.

Yes **THE** Nojiko.

I knew it was her alright blue hair with a red bow on the right side, tanned skin, pink lipstick. Her navy blue eyes locked with my grey eyes. How I got here well…

_**Flashback**_

_I woke up when I heard a door slam open and a rough voice shouting something I couldn't quite understand since I was still a bit groggy. I decided to continue acting asleep since my ears rang and my back hurt._

_There conversation went on for a few minutes I was able to understand some of it. Apparently I was found in a crater with 2 swords and a large bag. There conversation ended about 5 minutes later with each leaving to do something._

_When they left, I started sorting through my head trying to remember what had happened. But all I got was me watching some OP then blank, nada, nothing which was unusual considering my photographic memory._

_I snapped out of my musing when I heard a dragging sound. I see her coming with a black bag that is supposedly mine._

_Her figure is still blurred to me but my vision is was still strong enough to tell she was female and a pretty thin one to._

_I kept my eyes closed until she left. "She was probably going for the blades." I thought._

_I lay there still not willing to move, I simply keep my eyes close and wait for her return._

_My sight was clear now. When I hear another dragging sound, more labored than before a take a small peak. I had to use most my self control to keep my eyes from widening,_

_I regained my bearings and I carefully scanned the blades._

_The larger blade was what caught my eye. It had a startling resemblance to what I remembered as Ichigo's Zanpakuto. Silver blade, gold hilt, even the hilt was red._

_The other was radically different. Its blade was night black; the guard resembled a skull but had a set of skeletal wings sprouting from its ears. The sheath was a plain oil black._

_But the thing that seemed to make me wary of them was the odd sensation it gave me. Well not really odd but more familiar, like a good friend you just can't seem to remember. None the less it unnerved me._

_Ignoring the odd sensation I keep my open eye locked on Nojiko. Who was sitting on the floor with the bag in front of her._

_My own interest peeked I open both eyes and watch the now clear figure. It took me a moment to realize who it was and when I did…_

_My brain basically came up blank for a moment. "**NOJIKO!** NO FREAKIN WAY!" I shouted mentally. But it was true her tanned skin and blue hair were the give away. Although I couldn't see her face it was clear who it was._

_After gaining my sense back she had already taken an onyx colored egg with grey polka dots. She then began taking out a number of unusual articles of clothing, bandages aside. The list of clothes was compromised of…_

_-A long, black cloak with a chest piece connected to it_

_-A silver forehead protector_

_-A mask with black and white camo_

_-A white strap (likely for the larger blade_

_-A pair of combat boots_

_-A pair of black large loose leggings that only went knee length. Held together by what seemed to 2 straps with to white stripe on the top and midway point._

_-A black cap _

_-And a black pair of silk gloves_

_It took me a moment for my eyes to get all the pieces together and see what they would look like. When I did I immediately recognized the outfit._

_It was mystogan's outfit with a black and white color scheme!_

_I was so focused on the clothing I barely had time to close my eyes when Nojiko glanced over at me._

_Unable to look all I hear is the sounds of her standing up and walking to me._

_Then things got a bit weird._

_I felt a finger touch my left upper eyelid another finger touches my lower eyelid._

_When she pushes them open I open my other eye, "Now is as good a time as any." I mused. She didn't seem to notice my other eye. Her eye held an interested look and something else I couldn't make out. Deciding to get her attention I deadpanned._

"_Please stop."_

_**Flashback End**_

I stared at her in uncomfortable silence for a short while. During that time I was rapidly creating a background for myself.

I chose that if anyone asked I would tell them I was from Signor Island in the Grand Line.

Yeah… that was all I got.

I broke the silence and asked her in my same cold voice.

"Where am I?" I already knew of course but hey I needed something.

"You're in Cocoyasi Village." She replied coolly.

"I have a question." She asked. That caught me off guard. _"Doesn't she know more than me?" _I thought but replied anyways.

"Yes"

"What are you?" I was about to say human but she quickly raised a hand to cut me off. "And don't say human no normal person can survive freefalling and live. Let alone unharmed and plus you're still breathing with a hole in your gut."

I immediately sat up, completely ignoring the pain shooting up my back and pulled the sheet on my chest down to my waist.

And good god there it was.

A hole positioned right at the center of my 4 pack. It was about 6 or so inches across and went all the way through.

My memories of my time in the void returned to me all to quickly. And things started to click.

The hole in my gut, the pain I felt in the void, and the connection I felt with those blades.

The hole I recognized as the hole of a hollow. The pain I felt in the void was the hole being created. The fact that I am in a human form and have rational thought means I must be an Arrancar. Those blades that I had the strange feeling from were my Zanpakuto. The larger blade clearly my shinigami side and the smaller my hollow side.

Raising my hands I feel my face checking for the mask fragment but can't find it. _"But that cant be right the only Arrancar I've seen without a mask fragment were Aizen and Tosen. Does that mean I am an evolved?"_ I thought.

I decided that I must be an evolved Arrancar. Now I had another thought. _"Clearly I am here to stay so what should I do?" _I thought. Inwardly facepalming myself _"Duh I've got to join Luffy! Wait I'll need a new name, something better than simple Michael Hanes. Hmm how about Malaki yeah like the sound of that now for a last name. Seras it just sounds right. Yeah From this day forth my name is Seras. D. Malaki!_ I thought.

"Umm, hey you in there?" I her Nojiko ask.

Deciding to play it cool I deadpan. "Yes, as for what I am. I am a one of a kind being known as an Arrancar. Are you satisfied?"

She seemed annoyed with how I spoke as a small tick mark appeared on her head. "What's your name?" She asked.

"Seras. D. Malaki." I replied. _"Wow that felt great, almost natural to say!"_ I thought proudly.

"My names Nojiko. Do you know what happened?" She asked in her level headed tone.

"I do not remember but as long as I am here do you mind if I get dressed?" I reply somewhat uncomfortable with nothing but a bed sheet.

"Oh, you didn't seem to have any undergarments." She replied offhandedly.

I blushed, only a little but enough to get a giggle from Nojiko. She waved a hand at me.

"Don't worry I sent Genzo to get you some clothes. Although I don't believe you will need most of it." With that she was about to leave. But I still had one last question. Grabbing her wrist I asked.

"What is the date?"

She stared at me for a moment before replying. "It's May 1st." I let go of her wrist and she went to make herself some tea. It left me with time to formulate a plan.

"_Ok so it's May 1st and his journey starts on his birthday May 5th. He still has to form his crew and that'll be about a month and a half. Clearly I need to train my newfound powers and I'll need someone or something strong enough for me to grow in strength. _

I thought for a moment. I sighed knowing the only good fighters here. _Well looks like once I get dressed I got to pay a visit…"_ I paused for a moment before continuing.

"_To the Arlong Pirates."_

About five minutes later Genzo returned with some basic clothing. Tattered tan shirt and pants, a pair of underwear, and an undershirt. We stared at one another for a moment. He lacked his trademark hat and seemed to be sweating a little bit, _"Probably ran all the way her."_

"Oh your finally here he doesn't need all of that just the underwear." I heard Nojiko say while walking over with a cup of tea.

"Ok here kid." He said

I stared for moment before taking them with a short "Thank you". I put them on under the privacy of the bed sheet. Standing up I feel the pain in my back completely gone, _"Well I am an Arrancar I might have regeneration abilities."_ I thought.

Grabbing the bandages I begin wrapping them from my waist to my chest. I continue wrapping the rest of my body I feel questioning eyes on my back.

"This is why I have those bandages, to cover myself." I say offhandedly as I finish the wrapping.

Picking up the gloves I slip them on. Next I take the cloak buttoning the ruby straps on the front and connecting the waist piece. I stretch for a moment getting a feel on the bandages. _"Huh actually pretty comfortable."_ I thought.

Grabbing the strap I hook it under the chest piece. Then I pick up the black silk cap and forehead protector, I put the cap on first then tie the forehead protector over it. Practically giddy with excitement I take the mask with black and white camo and tie it so that it is covering the middle of my nose down.

Finally I slip into the combat boots and grab one of the leggings. Holding it up with one hand I hook the strap with the other, repeating the same process with the other leg.

I turn to the blades grabbing the larger Zanpakuto I pause for a moment, _"Holy crap its super light."_ I think while swinging the blade lightly. I hook it to its strap across my back. Grabbing the smaller blade and its sheath, I place the blade in its sheath and hook it to my waist. I turn to my audience and ask in monotone.

"How do I look?"

"Mysterious." They both reply instantly Genzo with a blank face an Nojiko with a smirk.

"_Well I need to join the Arlong Pirates and I need to prove I'm not human."_ I thought for a moment. _"I'll just wing it when I get there."_ I look at them for a moment knowing this is a touchy subject for them both before saying.

"Can you direct meto Arlong Park?"

"WHY?!" They both yelled. Genzo look at me like I lost it, while Nojiko seemed strangely blank.

"I need to get stronger and the fishmen are the only strong opponents here." I plainly replied.

"They'll kill you! They hate humans!" Genzo exclaimed. _"He has a point, but…"_ I thought.

I smirked at them. "Then I'll show them I am not."

"Your funeral." Nojiko said as she turned around and resumed walking to the kitchen.

Genzo stared at me for a moment. Than sighed. "That look in your eyes, I can't stop you." He said he sounded somewhat sad. "_Probably since he thinks I'll die."_

Genzo and I walked outside and we stopped at the dirt road. He pointed at the path. "Follow this path and you get there in about an hour." He said. I nodded and we went in opposite directions.

I know I don't have access to the majority of my powers since my blades are sealed right now. So I decided while I walked that I would get a feel for my spiritual pressure.

My Reaitsu was strange. Although I've never felt any before I could feel mine so easily. It felt thick like water but its outside was jagged and hard. I still couldn't see the color of my Reaitsu but that didn't matter now.

I know as it stands a fight with a fishman could very well kill me. _"I need to get at least 2 abilities down before I go, but which ones?" _I thought.

Clearly shunpo was the first as it was the easiest to learn. The second ability I chose to focus on was hierro mainly because I don't want to get cut in half.

Getting into a running stance I pulled my Reaitsu to my feet. Then things blurred out and next thing I know…

**BAM!**

I slammed straight into a tree knocking it in half.

Surprisingly it didn't hurt in the slightest. The sensation on my skin told it was my hierro. _"Well it is a hollow power, instinctual I guess."_ I thought.

My hierro was the easiest to learn I just honed my instincts so it was natural. It took about an hour; the same can't be said for my shunpo. Although I knew the basics it was incredibly hard to force Reaitsu into my feet evenly.

It took me about 6 hours to get it down but even then it was still rough. I had a thin sheet of sweat on my forehead. I had only used about a tenth of my Reaitsu. _"Probably my body getting use to my new powers."_ I thought.

I Shunpo'd the rest of the way there. It was now about 5 in the afternoon. _"It took me way to long to get that down."_ Were my thoughts as I pushed the gates to Arlong Park open.

I had apparently walked in at a bad time because I instantly felt hateful eyes on me.

"Human! Get the hell out or die!" One fishman with an eel like body called.

The others abruptly joined in riot.

"Trash!"

"Worm!"

"Garbage!"

They all seemed to get start moving towards me. I started panicking inwardly, _"Shit I should have thought this through! I can't beat all of them!"_ I thought. Until a loud, strong voice rang through the crowd.

"SILENCE!" He bellowed they all froze for a moment before turning to, _"OH Shit."_ Arlong.

I know I saw him in the anime but seriously this was ridiculous.

He was about 7 or so feet tall, with a long saw like nose. He wore a yellow shirt with black designs; his long black hair went a bit below his shoulders. Just below his neck a small but noticeable fin, he had green shorts with a purple sash tied to them. His head was covered by a brown unshanka with white fur on its rim. On the left side of his chest was the Sun Pirates brand and on his left elbow the Arlong Pirates Jolly Roger.

Are eyes locked for a moment sizing each other up. My steel gaze clashed with his predator like gaze. We stayed like this for about a minute until he spoke.

"Human what do you want." He spoke with obvious distaste. I decided to ignore it for now.

"I want to join your crew." I said like it was the most obvious thing in the world. His angry expression instantly broke as they bellowed in laughter.

"SHAHAHAHAHAHA!"

I had expected this but it was still damn annoying. Regaining his sense he looked at me with a wide, shark toothed grin.

"You, a human join MY crew. SHAHAHAHA! Good joke kid I'll let you leave here alive for that." He said to me in an 'I'm superior' kind of way.

"Did I ever say I was a human?" I said my voice as cold as ice.

His carefree expression instantly vanished. Turning into one filled anger and slight confusion.

"What else could you be?" He said with a deadly undertone. I didn't show I was affected in the slightest.

"You don't need to know. I have a deal I think you'll like." I replied.

His eyes narrowed. "And what would that be."

If I can defeat your strongest swordsman without my blades then you and your men will let me join you."

"And if you lose?"

"I'll becoming your slaved for as long as I live." I said without hesitation.

He stared at me for a moment probably playing with that idea. "Ok, you got yourself a deal…"

"Malaki." I said

"Ok, Malaki get ready to be my slave. Hachi get over here!" He yelled.

Someone made there way through the crowd. It was Hachi. His grey spiked afro and trumpet like mouth. Wearing striped maroon and yellow shirt and shorts. Three pairs of long arms, his forehead bear the Sun Pirates mark. The top set hands had swords in them, while the rest were hanging to either side. He seemed to practically swell with arrogance.

"I accept your challenge." He said with an aura of pride.

He raised his blades and fists balled he charged me. He seemed surprised when I didn't move. Then his eyes along with even Arlong were shocked when, instead of cutting and bruising me, the blades shatter and his fingers broke. I was completely unaffected even my bandages were intact.

"WH…what are you!" He stuttered his face clearly showed his fear. I smirked under my mask.

"Your worst nightmare." I said in a much darker voice.

Raising my hand to his forehead then I flicked it.

Nothing happened for a moment…

Then he was sent flying thirty feet back.

"NANI!" They all exclaimed at my show of power.

Honestly I was pretty tired, that was my first attempt at infusing my Reaitsu with a specific limb. My arm hurt like hell but still functioned well.

"Can I join now?" I said wishing I was done.

It took a moment but Arlong smirked. He walked up to me and clapped an arm around my shoulder. "Yeah you're clearly not a human. No human could do that."

And. Finish

Next time on One Piece: Michael to Malaki

Nami returns? The Straw Hats gain a new member!


	4. Chapter 4: Of Fishmen and Hollows

Disclaimer: Don't own One Piece

Chapter 4: Nami returns? The Straw Hats gain a new member!

[Arlong Park, Malaki POV, 1 month, 12 days later]

I sat on the roof of Arlong Park. A habit I gained over my time here. Thinking over my life over the past month or so I think on what I've achieved while training with the resident fishmen here.

_I still haven't been able to speak to my blades yet but I knew it would take a while. So far I've got my hierro strong enough to survive a battle with Zoro. My Shunpo works just fine, actually it was weird how easily all this came to me. Maybe I was meant for this._ Shaking the thought from my head I continue. _Ok I've also got enough practice to develop my own style. Plus I've got a grasp on a concept I was always curious about._

During the fullbring arc of bleach I learned that fullbringers are people born with hollow essence since birth. My theory that since their power initially came from hollow essence in their soul I could use some of their abilities. Basically since I am an Arrancar and can be seen by normal humans I must have some physical body in this universe. So maybe some part of my soul must be human.

I haven't really gotten far in those arts but I have at least managed the ability to shrink my blades into two necklaces my hollow blade took the form of a black flaming skull. While my shinigami blade took the form of a red skull with gold eyes.

I also got bringer light but I use it in a different way. Since it's much slower than Shunpo

I use it to repulse incoming attacks. It's Tiring but I've used it enough that it can stop a cannon ball. If I keep practicing I'll be able to deflect cannon balls easily.

That brings me to my more difficult achievements. Since I've been training with control over my Reaitsu I've been working on mainly kido. The first few times ended with self detonation and singed clothing. Oh yeah I found out that like shinigami uniforms, if I bind my clothing with Reaitsu it will be self sustaining. Meaning no crap smell and I don't need to change, it can just fix itself.

Ok so I learned Bakudo #1 Sai, Bakudo #4 Crawling Rope, and most importantly Bakudo #58 Kakushi Tsujaku. The last one was particularly difficult considering I pretty much skipped about the 45 in between. It took me about two weeks so not bad, plus it was worth the look on Arlong's face.

I also don't seem to need to eat only when I use my spiritual pressure a lot. And I've notices that despite how warm it is when I exercise I don't sweat. I only sweat when I've used a decent amount of Reaitsu.

I guess being me has its perks.

One of the things that still stumped me to this day was that egg. It was seemingly indestructible. I tried everything heating it cooling it, hell I through it at a wall. It cracked the wall; it barely had any dust on it. So I just put it in a bag and hooked it to my waist for now.

I've been thinking on what my position on the crew will be, well if I get on the crew. I would rather not be called a mage because it sounds stupid. So I went with the next best thing.

If I make it into the crew I'll be the Straw Hats Battlemage.

I've been planning on what I was going to do once Nami got here. It was actually pretty easy.

First I was going to talk with Nami, just tease her a bit. Then I'll free Zoro a bit after Nami and Arlong leave. I'll follow Zoro from there inevitably I'll meet up with Sanji and Luffy. When Johnny tells them Nami killed Usopp I'll tell them the truth. When Nami arrives I'll wing it from there with Luffy and the gang.

I also wrote a letter of 'resignation' to Arlong that I'll give to Hachi later.

I already know one thing. I'm gonna cut in on the moment where Luffy gives Nami his hat and give her one of my necklaces.

I know, I know it's cheap but hey she is one of my goals while I'm here.

Gazing down at the bottom of the palace I noticed the rat headed bastard with whiskers. I saw him for the first time about a week after I joined the crew. The bastard was surprised there was another 'human' in Arlong's crew. I had already decided that I was going to kill him.

They seemed to be talking but I really didn't care. All I knew was this as the scene before Nami arrives.

I Shunpo to the top of the gate, I can't see her yet but she's coming. Turning back to Rat- teme I see him exiting on Hachi's 'octopus pot'.

_Ok so right about now Usopp, Zoro, and Johnny should be here almost. That means Nami is about to be here._

**BAMM!**

I jerk my head in the sound of the direction. I see Nami with her Bo-staff handy and a crying kid. _Harsh but necessary_ I thought. I decide to listen to the conversation.

"Arlong doesn't have the time to deal with punks like you." She said in a rather harsh voice.

She put away her Bo-staff placed it in her bra apparently. She pulled out a wad of cash and said.

'If you understand, get lost." She then tossed the cash towards him. "Take that and go take care of yourself." With that she turned away.

I was impressed if I didn't know any better I'd say she was a cold hearted bitch. But I do so I already know it's just a shell created by Arlong.

As she entered Arlong and his elites immediately notices her.

"Oh, your back, Nami. You sure have been gone for a while." Arlong said "How was the trip this time?"

I leaped I landed, with the use of my Reaitsu silently. She hadn't even noticed me but the others did.

"Quite productive, I managed tons. I can't believe there are so many idiots out there. Take a look for yourself." She said while raising a hand to her bag and tapped it.

"Shahaha. You're sure the best at backstabbing others." Guess who said that.

"Well I must admit…" She replied letting the sentence hang.

Arlong eyed me for a moment. "Nami, we have a new member I think you could get along with."

"Oh really? Where is he?" She said letting a bit of curiosity leak into her tone.

He pointed at me. "Turn around." He stated simply.

She whipped her head around and stared for a moment. Her eyes widened when she realized I wasn't a fishman.

I tensed under her gaze for a moment. _I want a good first impression._

I walked towards her. For the first time I got a good look at her face.

Her short carrot colored hair and chocolate colored eyes practically glittered. I was about a foot or so taller than her. Reaching out my right hand I state.

"Seras. D. Malaki."

She reluctantly took my hand. "Nami."

_Ok time to warn her._

Releasing her hand, I lean down so my mouth is next to her ear. I see her tense for a moment ready to attack if necessary.

"Don't worry Nami. I came here to free these people and join the Straw Hats. Soon I'll destroy the source of your pain." I whisper.

Her eyes widen further and I straighten up.

"Well aren't we forward. Aye Malaki." Arlong teases.

Unable to handle it, I Shunpo back to the roof to relax. Well until…

"Hey crew, Nami has returned! Get ready to celebrate!" Arlong exclaimed.

Fishmen pop out of the water. Pumped up and excited, I wait for Zoro to show.

About 10 or so minutes later I see a ship approaching the sea gate. On the ship are Zoro tied up and two fishman man. One a husky, pink fellow with a small light post on his head. The other is an average sized fishman with brown skin and a fin protruding from his head.

"Hurry and open the gates!" The brown fishman calls. "We found a suspicious man."

The gates open as they enter I lock onto Zoro, who surprisingly looked right back. I scanned his appearance and he did mine. He seemed to be green themed seriously. Green hair, Green clothes even his bandanna was green for Pete Sakes!

I notice the bandages on his chest. I remembered how Zoro got them too; _don't think he'll be fighting to well._

After a minute or so of interrogation I was observing from the side.

"I'll ask you once more…" Arlong's face darkened along with his tone. "What's your purpose here?"

Zoro's face tilted a bit and darkened as well. "Like I said, I'm here for a woman. You half-fish bastard."

Raising his nose, Arlong gave him a condescending look. "Oh, this lowlife human got guts. I'll let that slip by me this time. But your not allowed to say half-fish ever again!" He said. I could feel his predator like killing intent.

Raising his left hand he went on about how high and mighty fishmen were.

I heard footsteps coming from inside. I locked onto the figure I saw to be Nami.

"I've gotten sick and tired of your theory, Arlong!" She said.

Zoro was shocked beyond belief. Arlong just waved his right hand.

Why are you so serious, Nami? Your special, your our greatest cartographer! You never fail to draw the most accurate maps. You to Malaki, but your not human." He said.

"Our brain compositions are different, so it's obvious why I can." She replied, slightly annoyed.

"Oi, Nami. What does he mean by "_our_ greatest cartographer"?" asked Zoro.

"What? You guys know each other?" said Arlong.

"Don't be ridiculous! He's just another victim. I gained a lot of loot from them." She said as she approached Zoro. "You don't even realize that you've been deceived. And you still come chase after me." Kneeling down to head level with Zoro. "Your just plain stupid." She said as if it were simple.

Zoro's face darkened further. "So is this your true nature?" He asked grimly. "And to think you hated pirates…"

"Surprised? Everything was an act. You'll understand after seeing this…" She said with a fake smirk.

Putting her shoulder forward with her right hand just below it.

Zoro was wide eyed in complete shock as he recognized the mark.

"I am a part of this invincible crew…" Fishmen stood behind her. She stood up her arms across her waist. "An officer of Arlong's crew!" She exclaimed.

Zoro dead eyed her, she simply smiled and began to laugh a bit._ Damn that is some good ass acting. Even had me going for a moment, and I knew what would happen. _

For a few moments there was silence.

"So? You're still following me now? From the beginning, I've only been using you. You guys aren't to shabby at fighting. You were a real useful bunch." Nami said.

"SHAHAHAHAHA. You were blindly deceived weren't you? She can even forget her mother's death for the sake of money. This woman's a cold blooded witch." Arlong said

She instantly grimaced at his words only me and Zoro seemed to notice.

"You shouldn't have underestimated her."

"I get the picture now…" Zoro cut in snapping Nami out of it.

He closed his eyes. "I never did trust her from the beginning. I wouldn't be surprised if she was a murderer even." He said.

"If you understand, just get lost already! You're an eyesore." Nami snapped.

He just smiled at her. She was confused for a minute…

Until he jumped backwards into the water.

"Why? Why did he jump in the pool all of a sudden?" A fishman said.

"Did anyone say a bad joke?"

"No, it's not like he slipped in because of one."

"Then he must be trying to escape."

"No way, his arms and legs are tied up. How can he swim? I bet its suicide."

I couldn't take before Nami had the chance to save him. Forcing Reaitsu into my lungs, I

jumped in, much to everyone's shock.

_Damn I know this was a test for Nami but I can't stop myself._

I swan down and grabbed Zoro's shoulder. He seemed surprised it was me. Then I felt another presence in the water.

It was Nami, she still wanted to help. _Well that fixes that._ I look to her and point towards his other shoulder. I get a nod in return. She moves forward at takes his shoulder together we pull him up.

Once were out, she and Zoro are gasping but I'm pretty much unaffected. I lean to Zoro for a moment and whisper. "I want to join your crew. I'm here to help."

His eyes widen before closing and giving a small nod.

"They got him!" I heard a fishman say.

"Oi! What are you doing Nami?"

Her eyes are shadowed by her hair and she's still gasping.

"What do you think your doing?" Nami says harshly.

Meanwhile I stood up and pulse my Reaitsu through my clothing, instantly drying me off and observe the scene.

Coughing Zoro replies in a strained voice. "Same to you, what do you think _you're_ doing?"

Turning his head to face her. "You can't even let one person die in front of you…"

"Quit the act already. Help me here idiot! I thought I was a goner there." He says with an ever present smirk.

The look on her face says it all. _I feel bad for the both of them now_

She stands up and pulls her right foot back. "Stop messing with me!" She says as she slams a foot on his back, eliciting a small cry from Zoro.

Grabbing his neck she stands him up. "If you get involved with me anymore, you'll die."

Zoro laughs a bit. "I wonder about that…"

"Wonderful bandage you got there." She says

"I can't afford new clothes. This is a substitute."

She pulls her fist back and slams it into his gut, making Zoro drop to the floor gritting his teeth in pain. She begins to walk away, probably had enough.

"Oi! Nami what are you planning for him?" Arlong asks.

"Lock him up; I'll take care of it." She says in a commanding voice.

Just then a large blue fishman with a huge lower jaw comes rushing in.

"Arlong-san! Arlong-san!" He calls.

Turning his head to the fishman. "Hmm, what's wrong, bud?"

"Forgive me." Motioning to Zoro. "There was a long-nosed guy who was with him, but I failed to capture him."

Nami gasps eyes widen a bit before gritting her teeth. I know Zoro is doing something along those lines.

"I think he fled into Cocoyasi Village, but…"

"Cocoyasi Village?" Arlong said with a commanding tone. "Good timing. I got some errands there. Shall I pay them a visit?"

Nami clenches her fists, unable to do anything. _Don't worry I'll fix this._

After he left, Nami left a little while after him. I immediately summoned my blades and started killing them all.

"Malaki! What are you doing?" They called.

"What I've been waiting for" I say in a cold voice. When I'm finished Zoro is already free with his prized blade on his waist. Returning my blades to there necklace form, I walk up to him. "It's time to get a move on."

He stares at me for a moment. "So? Why do you want to join are crew? I mean being with Arlong has its benefits right?"

I think for a moment. "Because I cannot achieve my dream here and I am confident your crew can. I believe you understand what I speak of."

He smirks at me, clearly getting it. "Ok what now?"

I was about to reply when I was cut off.

"Oooh ooooh oh! This one is awesome!" Someone I knew to be Hachi exclaimed. "Even I, a member of Arlong's elite, Hachi-Hatchan can' pull it up. It must be a super fish."

"That's what," I say with a hidden smirk.

He nods he walks over a hand on his Ichimonji. "Oi! Hachi, we've got a special guest!"

He turns to me and Zoro. "Oh I didn't know, you here to see Arlong?" I nod. "He's not here right now he's taking care of some errands."

"I know. Can you take us to Cocoyasi Village? It's urgent." I say in a more serious voice

Hachi takes his fishing polls out of the water. "Ok just jump into my 'octopus pot' and I'll take you there." He says as he dives into the water.

Once we enter it's generally quite, unless Hachi says something. After a bit Zoro finally asks.

"How did you get into Arlong's crew? Don't they hate humans?"

I was about to reply but was cut off…

"Oh! Oh! He came in about a month ago and challenged me for a spot in the Arlong Pirates. When I stab him my blades shatter and he hurt my fingers. Then when he flicked me on my head nothing happened at first. Then I was sent flying like a rocket. I still don't know his secret!" Hachi exclaimed.

Zoro was pretty shocked for a moment. "You mean to say you beat one of Arlong's elite only using your arm?" I nod. "How is that possible no human could do that? Do you have a devil fruit?"

"No, it's because I'm not a human." I say matter-of-factly.

"Then what are you?" Zoro said a little wary.

I smirked at his worry; I put a finger up to my face. "Secret."

The rest of the ride is drowned with an awkward silence. Until we arrive at the dock to Cocoyasi Village.

"We've arrived" Hachi said.

We both jump onto the deck. I turn to hand Hachi a letter.

"What's this?" He asks.

"If Arlong happens to be at the base. Then please hand him this letter." I say.

Hachi smiles and takes the letter. "Ok Malaki. See you later." And with that he puts the letter in his pot and swims off.

I turn to Zoro. "Now we need to find Usopp. And group with the rest of your crew."

I begin walking but Zoro doesn't follow. "So your names Malaki huh?" He says bluntly.

I inwardly face-palm myself._ Oh crap I forgot to tell him my name_. Reaching my right hand out I say.

"I almost forgot. My name is Seras. D. Malaki."

He takes my hand without hesitation.

"Roranora. Zoro." He says.

We immediately start running aimlessly into the forest. I stopped in my tracks and Shunpo'd 30 feet away. _Sorry man, nothing personal._

He stopped when saw I wasn't there.

"You should move." I warn him.

"Why? Something wrong?"

"YO, ZORO!"

Just then a boat a small, green striped boat came rushing through the forest. It slammed right into Zoro, sending him along with the ship into the forest. I Shunpo'd down the path of destruction caused by the ship to a cliff wall. When I neared the wreckage, it seemed everyone was ok. I heard Zoro shout something at who I assumed was Luffy. When the dust settled I saw him. Short black hair, straw hat, and a red vest. Next to Luffy was Sanji sitting down smoking a cigarette.

"Zoro you should be more careful." I deadpanned.

Luffy eyed me for a moment confusion written all over his face. "Oi Zoro! You know this guy." He said.

Zoro turned to me, seemingly annoyed. "Yeah he saved me from drowning and helped me escape, although I could've done it. He said something about joining your crew."

Luffy stared at me for a moment. "Why?"

"I have been waiting for you since you left your island about a month and a half ago." Luffy's eyes widened at that. "You have the will and the power to help me achieve my dream."

Luffy grinned at me. "And what would that be?"

"To unlock my true powers."

"Powers? Did you eat a devil fruit like me?" He asked.

Zoro cut in. "No Luffy guy said he isn't human, but he won't tell me what he is."

"Not human? He looks like one, just covered up in bandages." Sanji said.

_May as well tell them since Nojiko knows._ I sighed, "My kind are known as Arrancar. I'd very much appreciate it if you didn't ask further." They all nodded.

"Never heard of them before." Sanji said.

"It's unlikely you ever will. I am the last of my kind." I said with a hint of sadness. It wasn't sadness for what I am, it was more for the fact I'll never see my parents grave.

They all fell silent after that, probably feeling guilty for bringing it up.

I walked in front of Luffy and kneeled. "My name is Seras. D. Malaki, please allow me to join your crew as your Battlemage!" I begged.

There was more silence for a moment.

"No."

I looked up to him and stood up. _ That hurt a lot more than I thought it would._ "I understand." I turned to walk away, when Luffy grabbed my shoulder.

"You can't join when there is still a member missing, it's wrong. First we get Nami, and then you'll be part of the crew." He said that with the goofiest smile yet.

I smiled under my mask. "Ok… Luffy."

Zoro's eyes widened. "Crap! Luffy we need to get Usopp! He got captured! If we don't hurry he'll get killed!"

"He's dead." Someone said.

I turned to see Johnny drop to his knees, gasping for breath.

"It's to late." He said holding back tears.

He was shaking, his head hung in sadness. "Usopp-aniki is dead." He slammed a fist into the ground. "He was killed. By Nami-aneki!"

Everyone froze except me since I know what really happened.

"Yeah it's horrible…" Johnny said sitting down cross-legged. "That woman's a witch! In order to obtain some hidden treasure from Cocoyasi Village for herself. She was kissing up to Arlong! And for that purpose, she killed without even thinking about it! She's a rotten hearted lowlife! We've been fooled all this time!"

Luffy and I were pissed. Luffy charged at Johnny and grabbed his chest. I was struggling to contain my anger. Judging by the looks I was getting from Zoro and Sanji they could feel it to.

"Bastard!" Luffy yelled his straw hat falling to the side. "Say that one more time and I'll kill you!"

"Stop it Luffy, this has nothing to do with Johnny." Zoro told him.

Tears were streaming down Johnny's eyes as he turned away. "You don't have to believe me, but I saw it with my own eyes! I saw what she did to Usopp-aniki!"

"You're making up crap! There's no way Nami would kill Usopp! We're friends!"

"But I…"

Zoro noticed Nami in the corner of his eye.

"Who's friends, Luffy?"

Luffy's anger was snuffed out instantly. "Nami?" He said as he let go of Johnny and turned to her.

I turned to her she had her Bo-staff out, _never really liked that thing._

"Why did you come here?" She said.

"What are you talking about? You're my companion. I came to get you!" Luffy said while picking up his trademark hat.

"How annoying"

"Nami?"

She seemed bored with the conversation. "Friends? Don't make me laugh. You're more like a pathetic group of cooperators. Don't you think?"

Johnny seemed angered at the statement. "Why you… I saw what you did with my own eyes." He stood up and pointed a finger at her. "How… how dare you kill Usopp-aniki!"

"And your point is" She said slightly raising her voice. "You wanna try killing me to avenge him?"

I couldn't take it anymore I had to tell them the truth or something! "If you killed Usopp prove it." Everyone turned to me. "Remove the glove from your left hand if you killed him, or am I wrong." Facial expressions varied from shock, confusion, and downright bafflement. "I believe when she stabbed Usopp she used her hand as a barrier. The blood you saw was her own." I clarified.

She seemed to tremble a bit as I went on. "Nami I know the symbol of your pain and I promise to destroy it soon."

She didn't seem to have an answer for that. _Maybe I got through to he-_

"FINE! YOU WANT TO GET YOURSELVES KILLED! THEN GO AHEAD!"

With that she turned-tail and ran.

"I will return shortly there is something I must check on." I said as I Shunpo'd away from them.

I began moving towards Arlong Park. When I reached the beach I saw it was too late. The marine ship was already sinking in a whirlpool. I know I couldn't get them to stop since news of my betrayal has likely spread already. _There's nothing I can do for them._

I Shunpo'd back to wear luffy and the others were. _It's seems Yosaku and Johnny already left._ Landing on a tree that Sanji was sit against, I observed them.

"So? What do you guys know about Malaki?" Luffy asked as he stared at the sky.

"He was a member of Arlong's crew before defecting for us." Zoro said.

Sanji dropped the cigarette from his mouth, his jaw dropped. "NANI! How the hell could he be part of there crew!" He said pointing at Zoro

He shrugged. "He beat one of Arlong's elites with one hand. He was so strong that when they stabbed him there blades shattered, and when he flicked him he was sent back 30 feet."

Sanji didn't even know how to reply, while Luffy just grinned like a mad man.

Raising his hands in the air he shouted. Yosh! I'm gonna have a super strong Battlemage soon." I couldn't take the smile from my face.

I Shunpo'd into the center of the three. "I'm back. Where are we going now?"

Luffy put a hand to his chin. _Luffy! Thinking! Dear god!_ The others seemed just as shocked. "Well we've got to find Usopp since he's not dead."

Zoro looked to me. "Nami didn't kill him…" he looked bored. "Is that what you want to say? Isn't that right?" He scoffed. "I dunno. I made that little servant lose it already. She may have just killed him in a fit of rage."

Sanji was starting to get mad. "Little servant?" The idiot grew fangs and his eyes turned white. "What's little about Nami-san's chest?!"

They charged at each other. _ Sorry Usopp but I have to see this._

Sanji kicked at Zoro, and at the same time Zoro swung his Ichimonji. Usopp ran smack-dab in the center of it.

Result Usopp down for the count.

And for the first time in a while I chuckled. I mean seriously chuckled. It was rare for me.

They both froze then cringed when they saw who they hit.

"He's still alive." Sanji said.

"Nope. I think he's dead now." Zoro said.

They both retracted there attacks thankful that Luffy was oblivious. I tapped him on the shoulder and pointed at Usopp.

His eyes widened "USOPP!" He ran to his possibly dead friend and held him in his arms. "DID NAMI DO THIS TO YOU!?"

"No, uh, sorry." Sanji said pointing at Zoro. "That was him and me."

"It was you" Zoro said.

"Luffy, you're here." Usopp said grabbing there attention.

"Yeah, a little while back." He plainly replied.

Sanji smiled and waved. I'm here to, nice to meet you."

Usopp immediately recovered. He jumped up in front of Sanji. "I'll kill you some day."

Sanji put a hand on his arm. "Hey, you're ok even after that?"

"Shut the hell up!"

"Oh yeah, you were killed by Nami right?" Zoro said arms crossed on his chest.

"Damn him. Johnny was lying after all." Luffy said.

Usopp got serious. "Actually, there is some truth to it." They were all confused, I just smirked. "It's more the opposite. Nami saved my life."

_Wait a minute, something is gonna happen soon._ I sorted through my thoughts. _Oh crap Nami's money!_

Without warning I Shunpo'd as fast as I could it seemed I made it early that just made it better. _I can show off in front of her._

I stood at top of Nojiko's home, when I spotted Genzo being held by Nojiko. _ Crap I'm late._ I Shunpo down the path and see about 20 marines carrying treasure led by fucking Rat-teme!

I Shunpo to the front of the group. They immediately halt, Rat-teme eyes widen. _Good you recognize me._

I ran forward, wanting to save Rat-teme for later I used the hilt of my Zanpakuto and hit him in the collarbone. I started slice through the crowd like they were ribbons. "I won't let you take Nami's hard work!"

I cut down another while I threw my larger blade at ones chest. It impaled him making him cough blood. I Shunpo'd and jerked the blade out. I surveyed the remaining marines. They were shaking from fear and pale as the moon. I pointed my blades at them.

"Leave or Die." I said in a grimly calm manner.

They didn't need to be told twice. They ran like the hounds of hell were chasing them. I left the gold having no way to carry it on my own.

I Shunpo'd my way to the town and see everyone in the Village up in arms led by Genzo. They were cheering right when Nami came.

"Wait everybody." She shouted.

They all turned to her as she walked down the path._ Why the fuck is she smiling!_

"Nami!" Nojiko said.

"Just wait… just wait a little longer! I'm going to try again. _Fuck that!_

I Shunpo'd behind her and grabbed her shoulder. She jumped before turning to me, her eyes widened.

"How?" She said.

"You can't stop them that is what futility is like. Let them go, they've let you carry that burden long enough."

She froze while the others began to leave. She then fell to her knees; I could feel luffy approaching us.

Nami was crying and it was making my gut wrench. She squeezed where her tattoo was for a moment. She pulled out her knife, _Oh I'm gonna hate this._

"Arlong! Arlong! Ar…" she screamed as she jammed the knife into her tattoo. I cringed and grabbed her after the third time, by then Luffy was next to me.

She looked over her shoulder. "Luffy, Malaki…." _What the crap! She notices him first!_ She dropped the dagger. "What do you want?" She said through tears. "You don't know anything. You don't know what's been happening these past eight years on this island."

"Yeah, I don't." Luffy said.

"This is none of your business." She said as she basically clawed the ground. "I told you to get off this island. Didn't I?"

"Yeah you told me."

She threw sand at us. "Go away! You! Go away!" She said over and over again she eventually stopped. She started crying again. "Luffy… Malaki…" She looked over her shoulder tears still streaming, "Help me"

We stared for a moment. Then Luffy grabbed his straw hat and I grabbed my red eyed necklace. He plants it on her head and I hook my necklace around her neck. Her eyes widen at our gesture.

We turn away and start to walk, until he kneels down then shoots back up arms raised to the sky. "DAMN RIGHT!" He bellows to the heavens.

_I can't believe it I just broke into a super personal moment… and succeeded!_

"Luffy… Malaki…" She said, probably realizing the importance of the items. Luffy's prized possession from shanks and a part of my soul. _Although I doubt she knows that._

We begin walking and are joined in by the others.

And let me tell you that walk in itself was something else entirely.

It was like cloud fucking 9. I was pumped up and ready. Even my Reaitsu was rapidly recharging.

We walked up to a crowd a people at Arlong's gate. They were blocked by an injured Johnny and Yosaku. There were talking although I couldn't quite hear them. I understood once they stood up and looked at us.

Everyone else turned to us as well. Genzo and Nojiko instantly saw me.

"You…" Genzo said pointing to me and Luffy.

"I came to fulfill a promise." I stated simply.

"Move." Luffy said as we walked forward.

They move as they saw I was raising a fist. I looked at Luffy for a moment we nodded. Putting Reaitsu in hand, a pair of green rings appeared when inside the other but a but ahead.

"**Bringer Fist!"**

I punched the wall with devastating force. The gate and the wall around went flying like it was nothing._ Damn. That actually worked._

When the dust settle Luffy was on top of the fallen gate.

"What the…" Arlong said he recognized me immediately. His eyes look like they might pop a vessel.

"Which one's Arlong?' Luffy said raising his fist.

"Arlong? Arlong would be my name." Said the disturbingly calm fishman.

Luffy walk forward, towards him. "I'm Luffy."

"Luffy? And who are you?"

"A pirate."

The other fishmen tensed and grit there teeth. _Clearly there pissed._

"Oh! It's him! The ni-chan who likes to take walks!" Hachi exclaimed pointed a finger.

Two fishmen got in his way.

"C'mon, hey…"

"If you don't stop…"

Luffy stretched his arms out and grabbed there heads. "Out of the way!" He said as he slammed them together, knocking them out cold.

Most gasped, all except the crew and Arlong.

"And what does a pirate want with me."

Luffy stopped grabbed his right fist. Pulling it back he growled and hit Arlong across the face. He crashed into the wall. _ You've done it now._

Everyone was getting scared now. I've been around long enough to see Arlong in blood rage. Let's just say it's not a preferable experience.

Arlong stood up, not a scratch on him. "Who the hell are you?"

Steam seemed to shoot from Luffy's nose. His face took on a furious look. "DON'T YOU DARE MAKE MY NAVIGATOR CRY!"

"You bastard." The fishmen said leaping out of the water

"How dare you hit Arlong!"

I Shunpo'd across each of them before Sanji could cut in. With a few swings of my smaller Zanpakuto they fell to the ground dead.

"Oi! I had those ones bandages!" Sanji yelled as he we walked next to Luffy.

_Bandages!_

"Honestly Luffy don't go hogging all the prey." Sanji said.

"Oh. Okay." He replied.

Usopp was approaching now. "U…uh…I don't really mind, if you hog them all…" Idiot was sweating like crazy.

Zoro came behind him. "That's some bravery you got there."

"That's him! That's the guy! The one that went with Malaki! The unknown swordsman." Hachi exclaimed.

"That's Roranora Zoro." One said.

"As I thought! I knew it! He the one that tricked me. But what about Malaki?" Hachi said.

"Look it's that long nose guy!" A fishman exclaimed.

"Huh!? But Nami killed that guy!" Hachi said.

"He's alive… Which means…"

"I knew it I was right all along. That woman's a traitor."

Well Arlong looked royally pissed. Probably because I betrayed him but that's not important.

There was a short and incredibly tense moment we seemed to be sizing up one another but I already know there fighting style and there were weak. Only person for me to worry about was Arlong. Also I got to destroy the 'Source' of Nami's troubles.

Arlong started chuckling. "Pirates eh? I see."

He was sitting on the ground, calm as hell. Not like he just got thrown into a wall or anything.

"So that's the relationship between you guys." He said as arrogant as ever.

_Well, I'll leave the rest to Luffy. I got my own thing to do._

I was getting ready to leave when I felt it.

A dark feeling that was too different to be haki and to solid to be a devil fruit.

My eyes widened upon realizing it wasn't either…

It was Reaitsu!

I was sporadically searching for the source as I Shunpo'd away with dust in my wake.

I found myself on the roof of Arlong Park and what I saw was…

_OH…Shit…_

It was…

It was…

…a tear in the sky.

It opened slowly, like a curtain to reveal one of the scariest types of hollow ever…

…A fucking Menos.

It slowly walked out as its glove like hand pulled the fabric of reality. The long black cloak it wore covering nearly all his body. What worried me the most was the mask it wasn't a normal Menos mask. It was the basic skull format but the long nose was replaced by a small normal looking one. Its forehead had a short row of horns, at the center of each eye was an unnerving purple. Its teeth were uniformed with jagged knife like points.

_It's a unique Menos, Meaning it can evolve. I can feel it he's almost an Adjuchas._

I was curious if others could see it and apparently they could judge by the screams I heard I was sure they could. I Shunpo'd so I was just in front of him, blades ready.

Bad idea.

We locked eyes; its purple iris's scanning over my form. While I was observing the tear that apparently hadn't closed.

I was surprised when 2 more Menos came out. They had the uniformed mask apparently mindless. The unique Menos turned to the others immediately ignoring me. It assaults the first Menos, digging its teeth into its mask. The Menos roared in agony as the other was beginning to charge a cero.

_Shit! They'll destroy the village if it fires!_

I raised my blades to strike but was surprised when the unique Menos bit down right on the cero. Apparently saving the other hollow for later. Rather then losing its head he absorbed the cero. _Holy crap!_

The cero returned full force at the hollows mask darkening the sky. I felt an urge as sick as it was to feed on the first fallen Menos. I ignored the feeling, looking to the unique Menos. It ate its fellow hollow with raw animosity, it finished in moments. When it finished I could feel it. _He's evolving._ I was strangely calm it felt like it was right, probably my hollow nature.

When it stood up it started to glow with a radiant purple aura. Then a blinding flash, I covered my eyes from the light. After it died down the Menos now Adjuchas was surrounded by thick smoke, but I could feel its new compressed power.

When the smoke died down I could see him.

To say the least I was surprised by its new form.

It had a pitch black, hulking, demon form. The mask had no difference except the horns seemed a bit larger. It was around twenty feet tall; its hands were armored with what seemed like bone. Its fingers were sharp and curved, the eyes hadn't changed. On its shoulders were covered with white skulls that were an exact copy of his.

"Who are you?" Its surprisingly light hollow voice called.

"Malaki. D. Seras" I monotone.

It tapped a clawed finger to its mask." Cecil. Night. Where am I, I can't feel spirit particles except you and me."

"We aren't in the same dimension." I raised my blade and saw Cecil tense. "That doesn't matter because you will die here."

"You sure?" He asked.

I answered with a Shunpo and a slash at him.

He dodged it with ease. "I guess so." He charged a cero as he charged me. I Shunpo'd behind him, but was surprised when he wasn't there. "Like it? I call it Negro destello." Cecil said from behind me. My eyes widened as I turned to defend myself. A clawed hand clash with my blades, then the other hand swiped across my left arm. "You're not as strong as you look Arrancar." He taunted.

I decided to fight like a hollow and used my instincts. I charged forward with raw animosity taking over. My Shinigami blade clashed with both of his claws this time, just as I swung my blade at his right hand. It dropped to the ground as he screamed in agony. We separated again; my arm wasn't that bad about an inch deep. I focused my Reaitsu on my arm and it repaired itself along with my clothing. I turned and glared at Cecil with cold hatred.

"Hey, you started this. You know we don't ha-"He was interrupted by my Hollow blade lodged in his shoulder. I was losing it, his Reaitsu was affecting me or something cause I jumped on his face, a demonic grin stuck to my face. He roared with anger as I pulled my mask off and dug my teeth into his neck, tearing flesh immediately. He roared again, hysterically grabbing me but I refused to budge, the taste was too much. Better then the best food you could think of, almost on an ecstasy level. My eyes lost focus but my body didn't. The cries died down as his power flooded into me.

When the feeling died down I realized what I had just done._ I…I j-just ate a hollow._ I was clutching my head with one hand while I reached for my mask. I slowly put it back on before falling to my knees. _I-I know what I just did, b-but what did I just do? I'm a monster…_ I fell face first into the ground, feeling the darkness creeping up my eyes…

_...I'm an Arrancar._ That was my last dark thought.

OK guys! Flames and reviews all accepted! Be honest because I need to know!

Negro destello: Black Flash

Cecil. Black's special hollow ability. Like Shunpo but only applies when he is focused on someone's shadow. It allows him to instantly move behind his enemy.


	5. Chapter 5: Off to the Grandline!

Thanks AncientDoom for the help! I'll do my best and you're welcome to point out my mistakes whenever you like it helps a lot!

Disclaimer: Don't own One Piece

Chapter 5: Issues with Instincts? The Straw Hats Battlemage!

[Michael's Dream, Third person POV]

The sky was thundering while rain poured down .In a room painted egg blue littered with pictures of dinosaurs was a bed. The bed was a plain one with black sheets and white pillows. A child lay there grey eyes darting back and forth under his sheets, he about 6 years old. His name was Michael. Hanes.

Michael had a seemingly normal life his parents were loving and kind, He had friends just like anyone else.

**CRACK!**

Malaki shot up in his bed at what sounded like glass shattering.

Standing up he crept over to the door, opening it the tiniest bit he looked out.

He saw a tall man with long black hair soaked in water. He wore a black leather jacket, a white T-shirt and some jeans. He had a psychopathic grin on his face and his eyes screamed 'Bloody Murder!' He carried a knife in his left hand and a bag in his right.

Michael was about to open the door when his mother and father came out with a bat in hand. His father, Jack was average height about 5'11. He had grey eyes and blond hair; he seemed paler than the normal people. He wore a black robe and matching slippers.

His mother, Elena had an elegant figure; she stood at a short 5 feet. She had short black hair and emerald eyes. She was light skinned and was wearing thin white silk robes.

Jack raised the bat towards the intruder. "Get Out Now!" He exclaimed.

The man just smiled as he raised the knife in his hands.

Jack swung the bat at the mans forearm, effectively stopping his strike the intruder winced before slamming a fist into Jack's hand. The bat was sent flying from his hands as he yelped in pain. The now unarmed Jack looked up to the man in fear, being unarmed and at the mercy of a psycho does that to people. However he fought on nonetheless.

Jack lashed out at the intruder, sending enough blows to force the intruder to the defensive. He was about to land a blow to the jaw when the blade pierced his side, forcing him to freeze and look to his wound.

The man smirk widened at the site of blood while Elena screamed in fear for her husband. Jack fell to the floor the blood staining his clothing as it spread across the white tile.

Michael had already opened the door rushing to his father's side, tears pouring from his eyes.

"DAD!"

The intruder head whipped to his direction then turned back to Elena. He raised his knife to strike and slashed across Elena's chest. She froze before dropping to the floor.

The man then turned to the child, madness clear in his eyes. Michael turned to the man backing away against the wall knowing what was to come. He closed his eyes hoping it was a bad dream, that he would just wake up and they'd be ok.

The man approached him and kneeled to the child's side, his knife dripping with the blood of his victims. "Hey kid." He said in a sinister tone. The boy looked to him with fear practically radiating from his small form. "You're parents are still alive if you show me where they keep there money I'll let him go." His smirk not wavering in the least.

The boy didn't even have to think; after all it was his father. "O-o-ok." The man stood up as well as the child.

They walked down the hall; the boy was almost running wanting his father safe. They came to a brown door with a silver handle.

The boy reached up and grabbed the handle and opened the door.

The room was plain white with a king sized mattress at its center. There were a couple of cabinets, a photo of his parents at the altar, your average room. The boy entered the room and walked to the photo, the man followed.

Michael pointed to the photo; the man grabbed it and threw it to the ground making the boy flinch. Behind the photo was a safe with a simple lock and key.

The man looked to the boy, obvious what he had to do. Michael looked right back but not defiantly. "M-my Dad was always talking about his I.Q, try 112." Michael said timidly.

The man did so and it worked he opened it to reveal hundreds of dollars. The man smirked and took the money as quickly as he could and stuffed it in his bag.

When he finished the man turned and left the room followed closely by a worried Michael.

"Y-you'll let them go right?" He fearfully asked.

He was answered with a smirk as he approached the boy's parents.

Michael smiled hopefully only to have his hopes dashed as his father was viciously stabbed in the forehead again and again. He mother fell to the same fate.

Michael fell to his hands and knees, he just lost his parents and he was likely next to go. Tears no longer left his eyes as he stood up to face his parent's killer.

The man, now finished turned to the boy. "Remember me today kid…" He said with a smirk. "…because I stole your happiness."

Michael's mind was falling apart everything his parents were to him was gone, replaced with something else. It was hate at first but it became twisted as control of his mind was slipping from him.

The man was walking away a bit warily as to why he wasn't crying. Michael ran to the kitchen and grabbed a knife lying in the sink. The man didn't have time to react before he landed face first on the ground, a knife in the back of his neck.

Michael's expression wasn't sad or even afraid. His face formed a twisted grin as blood seeped from the now dead mans neck. He didn't stop there he just kept going… and going… and going…

About an hour later the police arrived after a phone call from the neighbors. There were met with the horrifying sight of a 6 year old child, blood splattered across his face continually stabbing an already dead man. His parent's mangled form covered in blood. They had to force the child down to stop him.

From that day forward Michael. D. Hanes was broken in a way that can never be fully repaired…

[Real World, Malaki POV]

I shot up, shaken from my nightmare and grabbed my face.

_It's my fault! I'm pathetic they died because of me._

The grip on my head tightened, not wanting to loose myself I tried to get my mind off of it. I just realized I wasn't on the ground anymore and there were loud sounds.

I looked around, scanning over my environment. I was in a house; it was small and had brown walls. It was pretty cold for some reason, my eyes widened. I felt for my head and chest. I also realized that I had both of my necklaces. _Wait a minute I gave one to Nami._

I was relieved to find the bandages had stayed but worried as everything else was gone. I began to stand but was stopped by a hand.

Turning I was faced with Luffy's goofy grin. I sighed in relief,_ If only he saw my face than its ok._

"Your stuff is right there." He said pointing to the floor next to me." It cleaned itself or something, it was really weird."

I ignored the last part as I grabbed my clothing. Once I was finished putting my clothing on I turned to him. "So… now that you have Nami back… may I join your crew?"

Luffy smiled as he walked up to me with a smirk and put his arm around my shoulders. He didn't answer me at all and began walking to the door of the small house we were in.

Now that I was fully awake I could here muffled sounds of what sounded like cheering and dancing. As we walked out the door I saw it was nightfall. The homes around illuminated the area as people laugh and danced with happiness.

It was a pleasant sight but not one I was use to.

Luffy released me from his grasp as he cupped his hands over his mouth._ Shit this is gonna be loud._ I cupped my hands over my ears.

"THIS GUY RIGHT HERE IS GONNA BE MY BATTLEMAGE! GOT IT!" He shouted at the top of his lungs.

All fell silent, absorbing the information as they all stared at me. It was uncomfortable with there curious eyes before they all continued to party but with even more glee if that was even possible.

I turned to Luffy only to see he wasn't there. I walked towards the nearest table to see Luffy practically inhaling everything in sight. I smirked knowing it would be like this for quite a while.

I turned and continued walking curious to what the others were doing.

I saw Sanji predictably chasing women the hearts in his eyes flaring at there features. _Damn perv cook._

I already knew I didn't like him from the beginning. I have a thing against perverts.

Zoro was sleeping as he always does, I found him to be the most pleasant to be around on the crew other then Robin. Despite being a directionally challenged idiot when he isn't grouchy he's pretty calm.

I decided I had more important things to do rather then sit around. So I made my way out of the crowd that was practically worshipping my new crewmates. As I walked threw the crowd I could here the whispers of others looking at me.

"Hey isn't it that guy that fought those monsters."

"Yeah, he just joined the Straw Hats."

"No way! Really?"

It was really getting on my nerves but it reminded me of what had happened. I Shunpo'd to the edge of the crowd and walked from there.

As I walked towards Zoro, who was sound asleep on a bench in between two houses. I thought about what had actually happened during the fight. _I saw a Menos Grande enter and I left the guys to go stop it, but when I arrived I saw it as a unique form of hollow on the edge of evolution. Then three-._ I was so absorbed in thought I hadn't even realized I walked right into Zoro.

I gave a startled yelp as I fell across his knees; I heard a angry growl and turned to see Zoro scowling at me. I quickly stood up, rubbing the back of my neck I sighed. _May have just ruined that friendship._ "Sorry didn't mean to walk into you." I only got an annoyed grunt in reply as he continued to scowl at me.

I frowned not exactly happy with the way things were going, but quickly smirked as I came up with an idea. "I could make it up to you with a spar when we leave this place." He seemed to perk up immediately after I said that.

"Really?" He said in a sarcastic tone. "I thought you lost your swords or something."

I thought about it for a moment before reassuring myself as I grasped my necklaces. "Nope there just sealed right now." I said matter-of-factly.

Zoro cocked an eyebrow at the statement. "Sealed? The hell are you talking about?"

I held up my necklaces. "I can seal both my Zanpakuto in this form when I don't use them."

"Soul Slayer?" He asked becoming more interested then I liked.

"Yeah… There the reflection of my soul." I said warily.

He seemed to get it and didn't push that subject any further. It didn't mean he was done though.

So what were those giant things from earlier? It fired a beam or something then one of them ate the others." He asked. I thought about it for a moment, _they don't need to know for now but I got to give him something._

"There called 'Menos Grande' there are cousins of my race." Well I wasn't lying completely; I am half hollow after all.

His eyes widened and the look on his face was priceless. "Those tall ass things are family!" He shouted grabbing the attention of a few people.

I was getting uneasy with the eyes locking on to me. "I don't want to continue this conversation any longer." Before he could respond I Shunpo'd away. I didn't stop until I was almost at Bellemere's grave; I walked the rest of the way.

_I never really got a chance to take in the scenery since I was training or working with Arlong._ It was true; I never got a chance to actually know this island and its beauty.

I stood still for a moment as I took in the scenery. The moons made the grass shine with beauty and the rhythmic sound made it all the more calming. I could see the light orange glow of the Village lights, this was most beautiful indeed.

I continued to walk until I could barely here the sounds of the party. I looked forward top see Nami alone sitting in front of Bellemere's grave. I frowned,_ to much like me except she never had a dad to lose._

I walked up to her, she seemed oblivious to my presence and I decided to leave it that way as she continued.

"…and there's this other guy named Malaki that can do a bunch a weird stuff. Though he barely ever seems to talk. He's a bit of a weirdo but he's nice. He said he'll help me when he new who I was." She started tearing up again, while I frowned. "They all believe in me so much, but… but I don't know what to do." She was crying now. I decided enough was enough and cut in.

"You should join the crew." I monotone. Her head whipped in my direction, eyes wide and full with tears. She was going to speak but I continued as I walked towards her.

"It's obvious even to me that they all care for you, though some of them are a bit pervy." She giggled at that one. "They went far enough as to fight the fishmen pirates to get you back. They did so without hesitation, you're a part of our crew. They will not leave you so easily." She seemed to catch the 'our' part more then anything. She cocked an eyebrow.

"Our?"

I smirked as I monotone. "I am now the crews Battlemage."

She stared at me as I sat down a few feet from her. "So… what were those things from earlier?" She asked. I sighed, were they all going to ask?

"They are… relatives." I state unsure of her reaction.

She only cocks an eyebrow; much to my surprise might I add. "Relatives those…things are family?" She asked warily.

I rubbed my forehead, _this is gonna be hard to explain_. "Well there more like distant cousins if anything."

She frowned clearly not convinced. "How are you anything alike? I mean you not a giant or anything?"

"I put emphasis on the _**distant**_ part." Changing the subject I said. "So you lost your parents as well."

Her eyes softened as she looked out towards the ocean. There was silence for a bit as I watched the tide move with its rhythmic sound. "Yeah." She mumbled.

"It was Arlong right?" I got a nod in response. "Were you there?" another nod. I knew going further would make her mad but I had a point in this conversation.

"Did you lose yours?" She whisper but I could hear her. I thought for a moment but I do need the crew to trust me.

"Yes, I am the last of my kind and they were murdered in front of me by a madman."

"So… I guess were alike then." She says. I smile.

"I guess we are…" I trailed off looking to the skies. I realized how late it was so slowly stood up and looked to her. Her tears were gone replaced by a small genuine smile.

"I got to go, can't leave those idiots alone for too long." I said in an annoyed manor. She giggled before responding with a small 'ok' as I walked off.

When I got back to the party it hadn't died down much. But most people were drunk.

I sat down on a bench just wanting to watch the others.

Zoro was out cold drunk, Usopp was spreading tails of 'Captain Usopp', and Sanji was still swooning over random women. I sighed, some people just don't change.

I sat there for about an hour completely relaxed.

"Mind if sit here?" An old. Gruff voice asked. I turned to see Gen.

"Sure." I said, not really caring.

He sat down next to me; he was just to be staring at me. "Do you need something?" I monotone.

He chuckled a moment before suddenly becoming serious. "I get straight to the point, I know the journey will be dangerous for you guys, but I want you to promise me." He paused for a moment. "I need you to promise you'll protect her, and if you **ever** take her smile away I'll personally kill you." He was radiating with killing intent.

I smirked under my mask. "I promise to you that not her or anyone on this crew will be lost because I will die for them if need be." The conviction I spoke with didn't go unnoticed. "My crewmates will always smile, always be happy, even if I'm dead." Gen raised an eyebrow.

"To have such a strong bond with them… what exactly did Luffy do for you?"

"He doesn't know it, but he did everything for me."

Gen sobered. "Really?" He said with a far off look in his eyes. He shook it off. "Well its time for me to go. Hope we meet again someday." And with that he walked off.

I sat for a moment longer before standing up. _May as well go to sleep._

I Shunpo'd to the nearest roof top and sat down. I dropped down on my back and look to the stars, I reached a hand up. _I'll protect them with everything I've got._ I lowered my hand and crossed them behind my head. _I'll deal with my problems tomorrow…_ and with that I drifted off into dreamless sleep.

[Cocoyasi Village, Malaki POV, Next Morning]

I woke when the light of dawn touched my eyes. My eyes slowly opened as I stretched. I normally don't need sleep but it felt nice.

I shielded my eyes with my hand for a moment, adjusting to the rising sun. When I lowered my hand my eyes were met with a beautiful sight.

The dawning of the sun casts a beautiful orange glow over the sea, making it glisten with light. The bird flew gracefully across the brightened sky with elegance.

It was really a beautiful sight.

I admired the sight for a few more minutes, basking in the sun. Then I stood up, we leave today and I need to get things straight.

_Ok, so now that I'm a part of their crew I can finally get everything straight. First I need to find a journal or something; I'll need to record my powers and discoveries. Then I've got to continue to work on meeting my Zanpakuto spirits because my Reaitsu is still to limited and I'll need to get stronger in the future._

With that I stood up and surveyed the area. There were a few people outside, and a lot more drunk or passed out. I could see the people putting boxes on the pier that held the Going Merry.

The Going Merry was bigger then people made it look, even from a distance it looked big. It was its same colorful self, the goats head smiling off into the distance. The sail was pulled up so I couldn't get a good look at our logo, but it didn't matter.

_Man they are really gonna miss her when the time comes._

I walked to the edge of the roof I slept on and leapt down, landing lightly on the ground I began to walk towards the Going Merry. People seemed to eye me warily; no doubt the news of the Menos has spread.

Ignoring them I walked up to a man I recognized as Gen putting a crate down next to our ship. He seemed tired for obvious reasons so I tapped his shoulders making him jump.

"Need a hand?" I asked.

"No, this is the last it. Is there something you need?"

"Yes actually. Do you by any chance have a journal and something to write with in one of these crates?"

He thought about it for a moment before he began to rummage through the other crates. "Hmm, I know its here somewhere… Ahhaa!" He returned to me with a leather bound journal as well as a pen. _Didn't think they had any._

"Arigatou Gen-san." I said taking the supplies.

"No, it's me who should be thanking you, after all who else could fight those 'Menos Grande' from destroying us?" He said, I sighed.

"Rumors spread quickly, don't they?" He smirked.

"Yes, it's a small place after all." With that said he walked off to god knows where.

I Shunpo'd to the figurehead of our ship, admiring the now fully dawned sun.

I could feel the ship sway as waves washed up against the bow of the ship.

I smiled a rare genuine smile. _I finally made it. I've waited so long for this that it fells almost impossible to be here._

I turned around and walked across the deck to the center masts ladder. I climbed up it and pushed open the entrance to the crows nest. Climbing in I sit down with my legs crossed. I laid out my journal which I aptly named 'Malaki's Recordings' and a pen in hand I open to the first page and began to write.

_**Entry #1**_

_**In the month that I've been in the Arlong Pirates I've learned how to use Shunpo proficiently as well as Hierro. I've also learned three Kido spells them being Bakudo #1: Sai, Bakudo #4: Crawling Rope, and the most difficult Bakudo #58: Kakushi Tsujaku.**_

_**It seems that most Hollow abilities rely on instinct to become active, from there its only a matter of honing the instinctual feel until you can control it to its full extent. This means any other abilities I might have will not become active unless I am under the right circumstances.**_

_**The egg that was found with me is still a mystery. All I've learned about it is that it emits a very small amount of Reaitsu. There may be a chance that it will react to my Reaitsu if I push it to its core, but I'd rather not take such a chance that it could be harmed. I will wait until after crocodile has been dealt with, that should be enough time.**_

_**I've also been testing out a new concept I'm calling 'Bringer Arts'. The concept is based off the group known as Fullbringers, humans with the capability to manifest the soul in anything. Fullbringers are humans with Hollow Reaitsu mixed into there soul. The Hollow essence originates from there birth parents who were attacked by a Hollow and survived. There abilities more interesting aspect is to fully draw the soul of something sentimental to them, Inoue Orihime is a perfect example. The hair pieces she carries allows her to reject phenomena's entirely.**_

_**I believe this power is because of the merger between the hollow and human Reaitsu. I've come up with the idea that because I can be seen by anyone then I must be human on some level. My abilities to use both Kido and Hierro clearly mark me as an Arrancar, but I lack a mask. So my theory is that I'm some merge between the three in a single form unlike Ichigo, who had to leave his body to access his powers. That means I can possibly use Fullbringer abilities and apply them to my Zanpakuto.**_

_**My theory was proven correct when I was able to seal both Zanpakuto in the form of two necklaces one in the form of a black flaming skull, and the other in the form of a gold skull with ruby red eyes. I also used an ability I named 'Bringer Fist' an attacked used by focusing my human and hollow essence only into my fist. Its form was not unlike what Fullbringers use to propel themselves in midair, as two rings of green energy formed a few inches from my fist. One ring was in the center of the other but was slightly ahead of it, it was also about half the size as the other ring.**_

_**When I used the attack it was not as instinctive as other Hollow abilities were. It felt more controlled, but it was likely because it is an ability I have only used on one occasion. I will need to practice with my new ability and explore other possibilities later.**_

_**My Reaitsu control was unusually easy then I felt it should be. That is likely because I have yet to tap into my true potential. My control over my Reaitsu is good enough that I can completely contain it, making it less likely to harm others. Also I can focus my Reaitsu on specific parts of my body or others. I have yet to find what color my Reaitsu is yet; it is suppose to reflect on ones personality so I assume it will have some darker colors in it.**_

_**I have yet to speak with either of my Zanpakuto, though I had not expected to at all. Zanpakuto normally come to his/her user's aid in times of dire need. Failure to learn there name usually results in eventual death, considering when they reveal themselves. I am curious as to what form my Zanpakuto will take, since it is meant to reflect ones soul. I am not as enthusiastic to meet my hollow side, as I have only seen them attack there user for control often. I am also curious as to how I summoned both of my blades when I gave Nami one of them. Does that mean I can summon them from long distance? Further tests are necessary.**_

_**That brings me to a more serious matter. When I was at Arlong Park a Menos Grande appeared, tearing the fabric of reality. I was surprised to say the least, when I got closer to it I was shocked to find that not only was it a Menos but a unique one at that, and on the peak of evolution. The rift it opened did not appear to close as two more Menos appeared through the tear. The Unique Menos disregarded my presence in favor of feasting on the unfortunate Menos. This unique Hollow displayed the ability to redirect cero's, an ability much like Neliel. Tu. Oderschvank. While I watched the Unique Menos attack the other Hollows I felt the strange urge to feed on the fallen Hollow. I ignored these urges as the Hollow fed on its brothers. When the hollow evolved it identified itself as Cecil. Night, I decided that Hollow in this world would be to dangerous and attempted to kill him. It seemed that redirecting cero's was not his only ability. He used a power he called 'Negro Destello' or Black Flash, it allowed him to emerge from my shadow at frightening speed.**_

_**What happened after that was not completely clear to me.**_

_**I felt an urge and it took control of my body as I proceeded to lodge my Zanpakuto in his shoulder and bite into his neck. He tried in vein to stop me as I continued to lose more control. The taste of a Hollow was greater then I'd like to admit. It put me in an almost euphoric state. I've assume that this has something to do with my Hollow instinct. It would explain a lot considering what I did.**_

_**These events prove that I am not the only being in this universe, and if Hollow can get here then I am worried what else can. This may be only around me, but that means that the original story line that the Straw Hat pirates will change dramatically, I am proof of that. This means that my knowledge of the future is shaken quite a bit. That means I will have to be far more cautious in this new world.**_

_**I conclude this entry with one final subject. If Hollow are capable of accidentally entering this universe, then what else can? I mean if Hollows are capable of accidentally entering another dimension does that mean someone more skilled like…**_

…_**Aizen.**_

_**I will have to become far more powerful to fight other anomalies in the future, much stronger. I will also be looking for evidence of other anomalies before me and see if anything they have will assist me in my journey for power.**_

With that I finished my first entry. Looking up I hadn't even realized how long had passed, the others were already here. Luffy, Zoro, Usopp, and Sanji carrying the crates on the pier to the deck of the ship.

I tucked my journal into the bandages on my chest; it wouldn't be a good thing if someone found this. I decided I would just watch them for now.

They seemed to have just finished loading the ship. I looked over the pier Yosaku and Johnny stood, a serious thoughtful expression on there face.

"Aniki's, thanks. We owe you all so much. Were going back to our normal job as bounty hunters." Yosaku said.

We'll bid our farewells for now. But hopefully we'll meet again someday." Johnny said same business like tone as Yosaku.

Zoro smirked. "Take care, a'ight."

You too, Aniki!" The bounty hunters exclaimed.

Usopp raised a fist. "Alright, let's get going to!"

Sanji seemed worried. "H-hey! Wait a minute! What about Nami-san?"

Zoro's smirk was replaced with an annoyed expression. "I thought she wasn't coming." He stated.

Sanji demeanor broke from shock to anger as he exclaimed. "WHY NOT?!" His teeth sharpened as he raised a fist to Zoro. "Bastard! You said something rude to her again didn't you?!"

"Why would I do that?" Zoro said.

Usopp seemed to be in thought about something as he raised a hand to his chin. _There just being idiots, no point in listening._

I stood up in the crows nest, I wasn't really surprised by the number of people. All things considered we just saved them, though I did in my own way.

I heard Sanji shout something about his happiness then I saw her. I smirked, this crew seemed so dramatic, even in leaving it seemed special.

"Nami-san!" Sanji shouted. _I swear, one day he wont be able to talk at all._

There were a number of others that called, some from confusion and others from exasperation (Sanji).

"START THE SHIP OUT!" Nami yelled to us as she started a dash towards the ship.

Gen-san and the others seemed to have realized what she was doing to, judging from there expressions.

"Lower the sail!" Luffy shouted as the sails of the merry came down, showing their pirate logo.

''Hey, they're setting off!'' ''Wait! We haven't thanked you yet!'' ''Stop, Na-Chan!'' ''Let us thank you!'' The villagers protested as Gen made his way through the crowd to shout at Nami's rudeness.

''Hey, you sure you wanna let her leave this way?'' Sanji asked his captain.

''It's alright. It's her decision'' Luffy answered and looked around. ''Where's Malaki?''

I decided to make an entrance; Nami continued her mad dash through the crowd in zigzag patterns and made a huge leap towards the ship. It looked like she was about to crash, but I Shunpo'd midair and grabbed her waist and Shunpo'd back to the deck, and let her go.

"You should be more careful." And just plainly laughed at her antics as she lifted her shirt up, where dozens of wallets fell to the ships deck.

She showed his the tong and turned back to the dock. ''Take care, everyone'' While waving off with a smirk.

''YOU LITTLE BRAT!'' The whole village shouted when they realized their wallets have been stolen.

I smirked this was all interesting to me.

''She hasn't changed a bit'' Usopp deadpanned with his arms crossed.

Zoro added his own words. ''Who knows when she'll turn on us again''

Nami ignored the rude comments and turned to curiosity written all over her face._ Why do I have a bad feeling all of a sudden?_

As though on cue she grabbed my mask and pulled me down. I barely had time to blink before I felt soft lips touch the bridge of my nose. Good thing I was wearing a mask or she would have seen my extremely reddened cheeks. _Did she just kiss me?!_

I stood back up, seemingly unaffected, but she seemed to notice as her smirk widened. I honestly wasn't very good with women, let alone feelings, because I've never had someone to love me.

"Bandages! I was supposed to help Nami-san!" Sanji shouted at me.

_Bandages! Are you fucking me! That's my nickname!_

I inwardly sighed before replying. "You were to slow." I monotoned.

Sanji was seething now. "Why you-" He was immediately disarmed by Nami-sans annoyed gaze.

She turned back to me, curiosity in her expression once again. "I thought I lost your necklace, but you have it. When did you get it?"

I actually forgot to tell her that. "I summoned it in battle and it came."

She didn't seem to believe me but didn't question further. She shrugged her shoulders and turned to look towards the others at the dock.

"BOY!" I heard someone shout. I turned to see Gen-san looking right at me. "Remember that promise!"

I smirked under my mask and gave a thumbs-up.

Nami looked at me weirdly. "Promise?"

"Secret." was my only reply to her. She then looked towards Gen-san and the others.

''Goodbye everyone! I'm off to Grand Line!'' Nami waved at them.

"Luffy-senchou." He turned to me, a curious grin on his face. It only widened when he saw me remove my necklaces and hand them to him. "You can play with these for a while. I'll get them back later."

He grabbed it immediately a put them on as he walked away, followed by an eager Usopp who also liked the necklaces.

I went to find a spot to relax after that as the others returned to their normal activities, which was made up of childish games, sleeping, being a pervert, and consistent head bashing.

About twenty or so minutes later I was just relaxing on the deck legs crossed, sitting next to a sleeping Zoro.

Until he was awoken by Sanji. Sanji was manipulated by Nami into becoming the guard of her oh so precious tangerine grove.

''Nami-san! The security guard of love is on duty!'' Sanji shouted in glee.

''Thank you, Sanji'' Nami said to him not even bothering to look at him from her news.

''She uses him like a tool, that idiot" Zoro was trying to make conversation with, since he had been woken up. We both were leaning on the ships railings with me looking to the other members of our crew.

"You can't blame her, its part of human nature" I answered to Zoro who gave a questioning to me. Locking eyes with him I added. "Do not worry about me, I am no ones tool."

"So about that fight…" He trailed off.

"It will be tonight, when the others are asleep."

He smirked, probably anticipating a good fight.

Hours later, I got bored of just sitting there so I decided to see what Nami-san was doing. Nami was opening the newspaper when two posters slipped out, Which I caught with extreme ease. I looked over the poster. _Wanted posters huh?_ I was smirked under my mask. I handed on to Luffy as I went to the rail and leaned on it.

''Hahahahahaha!'' Luffy started to laugh and hold his own wanted poster in front of everyone. ''Check it out, we're WANTED!''

**Wanted**

**Dead or Alive:**

**Monkey D. Luffy aka 'Straw Hat Luffy'**

**39,000,000 Beli**

''39 million! Yeah!'' Luffy boasted while holding his wanted poster for everyone to see.

''Check it out! Even my back is famous now! Damn, I've got it goin' on'' Usopp also boasted from the small area in the poster that showed his back.

Sanji brooded over his lack of a bounty. Usopp told him then something encouraging and started to dance with Usopp about being famous someday.

''All right crew! We're goin' to the Grand Line!'' Luffy announced.

''Yaay!'' The dancing duo cheered.

Nami noticed me holding the other poster. "What are you looking at Malaki?"

Rather then answering I just raised the poster for them to see. I was pretty sure my grin was radiating by now.

The crew looked at the poster of yours truly.

"NANII!"

**Wanted**

**Dead or Alive:**

**Seras D. Malaki aka 'The Hollow Swordsman'**

**30,000,000 Beli**

"That face fit's the name" Usopp said, a shiver going down his spine. The others nodded in agreement.

The image was of my face, my cold eyes seemingly pierced me, it was weird and a little scary. It didn't help that there was blood splattered across my mask and a marine with a 4 inch gap in his chest.

''Dude that picture of you is just wrong'' Zoro pointed out.

''What! Even you get your own poster before me!'' Sanji yelled in outrage. ''I joined before him!''

''Hahahaha! Awesome Malaki!'' Luffy exclaimed and gave his 'first mate' a pat on the back. ''Now we're both famous!'' And started to dance and sing with his posters in his hand ''~We got our own post, we got our own post~''

''Once again you really don't understand the seriousness of this situation!'' Nami palmed her face. ''Don't you see this means they're coming for our heads? After this, I don't think we'll be able to lounge about in East Blue anymore''

Luffy was still dancing now with Usopp, but the song was changed into 'We are famous'.

''You guys do know with the total of 69 million, now we will be hunted by more then just weak marines." I monotoned. The two idiots danced, although Usopp froze and was just standing like a statue, while the other laughed.

''I still can't believe it! Him!'' Sanji pointed at me.

"Calm yourself, you will eventually get on." I said in a darker tone, that seemed to shut him up.

When Luffy finally stopped dancing there was a marine ship made out of junk going opposite of our direction where Luffy just waved at them. ''Are those pirates using a scrapped military boat?''

''How wasteful, the marines are. Just throwing them away as scrap...'' Usopp shook his head.

''We are not scrap! Are you idiot's blind?'' A marine officer shrieked that had a weird suit and a metal brass knuckles. ''How could you forget Fullbody the 'Iron Fist'?''

''Ah! It's that marine ossan! Are you in trouble? Do you need us to save you?'' Were the sincere questions from Luffy.

''I doubt that, they were unable to afford anything else." I told his captain.

''Stop kidding around! Destiny has placed you both into my hands'' Showing the pictures of me and Luffy. ''Monkey D. Luffy and Seras D. Malaki! You two are under arrest!''

''Cool! Me and Malaki's pictures look good!'' Luffy smiled and just plainly ignored the proclamation from Fullbody.

''And the back of my head looks good too!'' Usopp nodded to himself until Sanji slammed him across the head.

''Dead or Alive! Load Cannon!'' After a quick 'aye' the marines took aim at the goat headed ship.

''They're so noisy! What's going on?'' Nami asked and looked around from the paper she was reading.

''What're they doing? Attacking us? They're aiming right at us, this isn't good!'' The fearful voice of Usopp began to shriek in the background.

''Alright! Lemme at 'em, I'll bounce it right back!'' Luffy prepared himself.

''Yes captain.'' I said and went over to Nami to relax. As I made my way to the navigator, she put her newspaper away.

''What's happening over there?'' Nami asked.

"Some marine named Fullbody, he's apparently here to claim our heads'' And sat next to her in the other available sun chair.

''Not even 30 minutes and you guys already have someone after you'' Nami sighed in frustration.

''No need to worry, this is what it means to be a pirate." I told her and decided to take the egg I've been carrying and study it.

Nami just stared at it. ''Do you know what type it is?''

"No, it arrived with me when I landed in your sisters grove." I said as I put the egg away.

In the background, there was a loud explosion with curses and kicks, that ended up with splashes of water.

I stood up and what to the figurehead of the ship, which I sat on with my legs crossed.

I decided to simply focus on my Reaitsu control for the next couple of hours, folding and compressing my Reaitsu, especially since I don't even know its color.

I was relatively undisturbed, mainly because my Reaitsu gave a dark aura when I focused it on something.

I was trying to give my Reaitsu a physical presence so that a could identify it's color. I was getting tired and the ball I made didn't even show yet, but I could feel a lot of power from it. I was almost there when…

"Hey! Bandages! Come and eat before Luffy eats it all." Sanji called, effectively breaking my concentration on the delicate balance of my Reaitsu

The result was an uncontrolled amount of Reaitsu being released. I didn't blow up or anything, but it tired me out completely and forced Sanji to his knees and the air out of his lungs.

I practically jumped to his side offer a hand. "I'm sorry. I was attempting something when you broke my concentration."

When he regained his bearings he surprisingly took my hand and we walked to the kitchen.

It was odd to have him so quiet,_ I may have scared him with that wave of Reaitsu, it is known to be able to have such an effect._

We said nothing as I went to sit with the others. I sat next to Luffy at the head of the table and across from Usopp.

Sanji served soup to Nami and steak to everyone else in silence, not a 'Nami-chan' was heard.

"Is something wrong with Sanji? He's usually fawning over Nami." Usopp said as he took a bite of his steak.

Nami nodded. "Yeah, does anyone know anything?"

I stared at my untouched steak for a moment before turning to Luffy. "I was experimenting with my Reaitsu, when Sanji came over and called me to dinner. My concentration broke and releases a wave of massive spiritual pressure in a controlled area. The downside to was that my Reaitsu seemed to have hit him pretty hard." I receive questioning looks from the crew. "You see my Reaitsu is from my soul itself, so when I exert it, it touches the souls of others which is why I contain it. Reaitsu has been used in some cases by exerting it on a single person, the result is a primal fear is awoken in their soul. Also it can force a person to their knees if it's to strong." When I finished my explanation Nami and Usopp seemed to understand some of it, while Luffy's face was blank.

Zoro was smirking at me. "So what your saying is only the strong can withstand it."

I knew exactly where he was going with this. "You want me to exert it don't you?" He nodded. "Don't say I didn't warn you, but first…." I raised a hand over my food and used my 'Bringer abilities to brake it down into green energy which I absorbed through my hand.

"Does anyone else want to participate". Usopp and Nami immediately shook their heads, Luffy nodded with a shit-eating grin.

I focused my Reaitsu as tightly as I could on Zoro first. He immediately started sweating, his muscles tensed and he was stuck in his chair unable to move as air left his lounges before I stopped. He gasped for air and wiped a hand at his face.

"Holy crap." He whispered. "It felt like an ocean fell on me."

"Me next! Me next!" I didn't need to guess who that was.

I then focused my Reaitsu on Luffy. I was surprised to see he was only mildly sweating, but overly unaffected. I guessed it was the 'Kings Will' Haki stuff, so I let up.

He smiled at me. "It wasn't that bad." He said as he attempted to steal the remaining steak off my plate. I smirked, I just had the greatest idea.

Raising a hand I pointed my index and middle finger to Luffy who paused, confused by my action. "Bakudo #1: Sai." I murmured. Luffy's arms retracted immediately before locking behind his back, he fell to the floor as he tried to escape the bindings in vain.

I turned to the others who were shocked by the display of power, until Nami and the others burst out laughing.

"Finally! Someone stops Luffy's massacre!" Usopp exclaimed with a grin.

"Come on guys! Let me out please! Malaki?" Luffy pleaded as he continued to resist the bindings.

I nodded and released the energy in the bindings. Luffy stood up, grinning like a madman, stars in his eyes as I handed him my plate. He inhaled faster then I could blink..

"Fhrnk you Malaki!" He said as he finished my food.

The crew finished dinner and went to their quarters except me and Zoro who were waiting for the crew to fall asleep.

When we could hear Luffy and the crew snoring we stood up and went to the center of the deck, standing opposite to one another.

He drew his prized Wado Ichimonji, while I only summoned my smaller, hollow Zanpakuto.

Hey, it may seem disrespectful but he didn't have all three swords either.

We stared at one another for a few moments, as we sized each other up.

"So… do you want me to use magic?" I asked.

He shook his head. "This is just blade to blade."

I nodded as I raised my blade, he did the same.

Then we charged at one another.

The initial clash of blades I could feel how damn strong he was, though I wasn't reinforcing limbs with Reaitsu I was still damn strong. We were struggling for dominance over one another. He was starting to overpower me, something I would not let happen so easily. I jumped back to regain my stance, and he came with his blade in a piercing motion.

I was surprised by the tactic considering I've never seen him move this way before. I parried the first few strikes then one slashed my arm, drawing black blood (not to be confused with Crona's). I decided not to heal it since I couldn't use magic. He attacked with another pierce but this time I let hit dead on. It pierce threw my gut and waistband.

There was silence for a moment as I saw Zoro tense with worry, which turned to confusion as I reached forward and grabbed the hilt of his blade and bought my sword down to connect with his forearm, forcing him to let go of his sword and fall to the ground.

I took the sword entangled with my bandages and pointed both towards him in a forward X-formation at his neck.

He seemed both shocked and confused. "How?" was all he was able to say.

I smiled under my mask and seal my sword. Then handed him his sword, which he hesitantly took.

"All Arrancar have a hole on some part of their body symbolizing there power." It wasn't necessarily true, but it was better then saying 'It's a hole where my heart should be'.

I offered a hand which he took and pulled him up. "I'd say its time to get some sleep. Don't you?" I monotone. He nods an affirmative and goes into the ship, leaving me with my lonesome self.

I stood there for a moment before healing the wound on my arm. When I finish I Shunpo'd to the crow's nest, a place that I've been spending a lot of time lately, and sit against the railing, my head looking to the stars.

_There all so unfamiliar… I truly am gone._

The stars were so vastly different from my own worlds, but that made it that much more beautiful.

I continued to gaze at the stars until I decided to sleep.

[Next Morning]

I woke at dawn as I always do and went down to the deck.

I admired the view for a while as the orange glow of the sky reflected on the sea.

After a little while I started to do some pushups. I saw Sanji come up and we looked at one another for a moment he just scoffed and went to the kitchen.

I smiled, hoping he got over last nights incident and continued to train.

Sometime later the rest of the crew woke up, the last being Zoro obviously.

We had some breakfast then went to the deck and resumed are normal activities, Until Zoro said he spotted an island up ahead.

"Eh? Really?" Luffy said as he sat on the ships figurehead, or rather his favorite seat. "What island is that?"

"Didn't we go over this already this already?" Nami said as the rest of the crew looked to the island ahead.

"So that's where Loguetown is?" Usopp said gesturing to the island.

Sanji looked over the city as he smoked a cigar. "It's a pretty big city."

I nodded, deciding to drop a bombshell. "It is, though I haven't been here in a while."

Luffy grinned, while the others were shocked.

"You've been here before?!" Luffy asked stars in his eyes as he jumped in front of me. "Tell me! Tell me! What's it like?!" He was giddy with curiosity.

I smiled at his antics under my mask. "That would spoil the surprise now, wouldn't it? Don't you like surprises?" I spoke to him as I would a child.

Luffy smile widened. "Yeah! You're right! Don't tell me anything!" He said as jumped back to his seat.

The crew looked to the island wondering what was to come.

I was preparing myself for the possibility of another anomaly as we headed to the island.

Thanks for the reviews guys! Ok so I've been thinking on his Zanpakuto. Don't worry he still doesn't get it for a while, but I still need a general idea of what it should be. I you have any suggestions. Then please send them in via private message.

Now time to work on the next chapter!


	6. Chapter 6:The Dragon Comes! A Dream?

Disclaimer: Don't own ONE PIECE

Chapter 6: The Dragon Comes! A Dream?

[Loguetown Docks, General POV]

"So, what are you guys doing?" Usopp asked to no one in particular.

"I'm going to see a weapons shop here." Zoro said.

"May I join you?" Malaki monotoned, wanting to see other swords of this world.

He gets a grunt for an answer and they begin to walk off, only to be stopped by Nami.

"How are you planning on doing that? Last time I heard, you were dead broke." She said, here smirk practically radiating a sick joy.

Zoro froze and Malaki raised a questioning eyebrow.

"I can loan you a _small_ interest." She said. He accepted warily and we proceeded to leave, but not before our rubber captain yelled.

"I'm going to see the execution platform!" He proclaimed hands in the air.

Malaki's aura darkened dramatically and Luffy was cowering behind a worried Nami.

"If you do something stupid and get us in trouble. I will personally punish you with Kurohitsugi on you." Malaki said in a dark tone. Luffy didn't know what the attack even was.

"Kurohitsugi? What's that?" Luffy dumbly asked. Malaki's aura got darker, if that was even possible.

"It's magic, or more specifically a spell that traps you in a black box that's pierced with one thousand spears." Luffy was terrified as he continued. "The worst part is that in that box time is dramatically slowed down. So you'll feel. Every. Last. Moment." Zoro seemed worried while Usopp and Luffy were looking at their Battlemage with an entirely new form of fear, Nami was trying to hide the fear but was failing miserably as her legs trembled. Sanji had already left the group.

Malaki's aura returned to its neutral state, but the crew was still wary of him. Who could blame them?

Malaki turned to Zoro. "Are you ready to go yet?" Zoro nodded, and the two walked into the town.

Sometime later, Zoro and Malaki were lost in the bustle of the town.

Malaki stopped for a moment admiring the town.

The sound of people moving about on the cobblestone roads and the call of vendors filled the street. Houses and shops connected to one another, forming a direct path. The buildings were for the most part similar, unlike the people who lived in them.

Malaki's senses come back to him as he turns to Zoro only to find he isn't there.

_Shit! I need to be more attentive!_

It honestly didn't matter to him very much, considering what was gonna happen soon.

Since he had nothing better to do he wandered for a while, no destination in mind, simply admiring people's happiness, something he seriously lacks.

He continued walking when a man walked down the street and yelled. "Enter The Greatest Music Contest Of The Year! The winner gets $15,000 Beli!". That caught Malaki's attention, money was something he sorely lacked and needed, and music wasn't very difficult for him. He approached the blissful man. He wore interesting clothing, clad in what seemed like pink kimono covered in musical notes, his face seemed disturbingly cheerful.

Malaki tapped the strange mans arm, gaining his attention. "I would like to join this contest." He stated simply.

The mans smile widened, if that was possible, it could rival even Luffy. "Oh? Excellent! I've been waiting for a knight to appear! Oh, and those bandages! So modest!". Malaki was becoming more and more disturbed the closer this guy got to him. "My name is Assam The Magnificent!" He exclaimed in a pose that boasted greatness. "So? What instrument do you use! You seem like the gentle type!".

This guy was starting to piss Malaki off, but he still hadn't thought on what he would perform. When he found one of the few pieces of music that truly spoke to him, he would learn every note of the song, and even remember a live performance so he could properly replicate it. In this world he didn't want to introduce too much of his music, so he chose the saddest song he could think of. "I use the piano, and my name is Jarvis." He monotoned.

He wasn't stupid enough to go flaunting his name so he just made one up, and it happened to be from Gears of War, but then again he **is **wearing clothes that set him apart from others.

"Piano! That's excellent you must be great! Oh, and Jarvis what a beautiful name." Assam exclaimed. "Come with me! We must prepare you for the audience!"

And so he went, led by Assam to what looked like an outdoor stage. Basically it had curtains surrounding three corners except the when in front of the actually pretty large crowd.

They walked by the crowd, and passed the curtains. There were about four people, probably contestants sitting on a bench. They were all normal people, except one stood out among the rest. He seemed more or less like Bob Marley. He had dark skin, dreadlocks, the works, all he needed was a rainbow-colored shirt.

Assam tapped Malaki's shoulder, gaining his attention. "Sit with the others, we'll get you're instrument ready!" Malaki complied, sitting next to the-would be Bob Marley.

Assam scurried off somewhere, while Malaki went over the piece of music he was going to do. He believed this was likely the only the song capable of depressing even Luffy. He was snapped from his musing when he felt a nudge on his shoulder. He turned to the Bob Marley wanna be.

"Hey, so what type of musician are you?" He asked in a nonchalant way.

"Isn't it proper manners to introduce ones self before questioning someone?" Malaki monotoned.

The man simply smiled and rubbed his head sheepishly. "Heh heh… sorry." He said as he raised his hand to Malaki. "Names Jackson, Soras Jackson, but everyone calls me Jack" He said in a James Bond kind of way.

Malaki took his hand as they shook. "Jarvis, no last name."

Jack seemed confused but didn't question it. "So…" He said awkwardly.

"I play the piano." Malaki said.

Jack smirked. "Really? I play the acoustic guitar, it seems we both represent are instrument."

Malaki seemed confused by the statement, but didn't get a chance to ask as he someone announced.

"Hello People! Welcome To The Greatest Music Contest Of The Year!" The crowd cheered in excitement.

"First Up!" And so musician by musician went, the others were crappy or to loud for Malaki's taste. Jack was actually pretty good, as he played music that was reminiscent to that of Bob Marley himself, it was just so calming.

When he finished, he confidently sat down next to Malaki, and patted him on the back. "Good luck man." Malaki simply nodded.

"Well Everyone! That Was Great!" They all cheered. "Now for our final performance! The introverted knight of modesty! Jarvis!" Assam exclaimed, the crowd cheered again.

Malaki stood up and proceeded to the stage, then walked to the piano positioned in the center of it. He sat as silence consumed the crowd, he let his memories command his hands, as he began to replicate the sound of sadness. **(Si dues me relinquit, piano version, from ****Kuroshitsuji).**

He began to sing in accordance to his hands.

**Si deus me relinquit,  
Ego deum relinquo.  
Solus oppressus nigram clavem habere potest,  
Omnias ianuas praecludo  
Sic omnias precationes obsigno.  
Sed  
qui me defendet?  
Ab me terribilissimo ipse.**

Translation is as follows.

**If God has forsaken me,  
Then I shall forsake God, too.  
Only the oppressed may possess a black key,  
I close all doors  
Thus I seal away all prayers.  
However  
who protects me?  
From the most frightful: myself**

Despite it being midday, everyone there couldn't help but feel a dark sorrow creep into them. They couldn't even understand the words, but they could feel the hollowness in the voice of the singer was actually stronger than the song.

The normally cheerful Assam was crying in utter despair, his legs trembled from his words.

Jack seemed affected as well, as silent tears fell from his eyes.

Assam walked out slowly, as not to fall. "T-t-that was SO SAD! Bwaaaaa!" He cried once more along with the crowd, as Malaki stood up and approached his spot on the bench.

The others on the bench were crying, Jack had only a few tears.

Jack turned to Malaki, understanding written all over his face. "Dude…" He didn't know what to say. This guy just played music from his soul, and it sounded so sad, so… alone.

Malaki simply ignored him, he didn't seem affected by the music, but then again he hasn't cried since the loss of his parents.

When Assam gained back his composure, he knew who had on this contest. "People of Logue Town!" He exclaimed, getting the attention of the still saddened crowd. "Who Do You Think One!" He exclaimed once more, but it didn't have his normal cheeriness in it, it felt subdued.

The crowds reaction was immediate.

"JARVIS!"

"The Sad One!"

"JARVIS THE DEPRESSOR!"

Malaki thought about that last name he heard, it didn't sound half bad.

Assam yelled. "There We Have It! This Years Winner Is Jarvis The Depressor!"

Malaki walked on the stage, and was accompanied by cheers of everyone there, even the other contestants.

Assam handed him the bag, of what he assumed was the money. He looked over the crowd that cheered him. He saw a familiar orange head of hair…

_Shit! It's Nami!_

And there she was, her normal devious demeanor gone replaced with both sadness and surprise, her eyes were wet with tears that soaked her shirt. As the crowd dissipated Malaki walked up to Nami, who was sitting down, still wiping the tears from earlier away.

Malaki sat down next to her, wondering what her reaction was. There was an akward silence between the two for a short while.

"So… you can play the piano to?" She asked in a quiet voice.

"Yes." He replied simply.

"What else can you do?" She asked, her voice seemed to return to its arrogant self with just a tinge of curiosity.

"Many things, you'll just have to wait and see." He said off-handedly.

Nami pouted for a while, but she knew it wouldn't affect Malaki.

"What made you like this?" She asked in a much kinder voiced.

Malaki froze, tense with something akin to fear, but not quite. She seemed to pick up on his unease.

She ligtly clapped a hand on his shoulder. "I'm sorry I d-" but was cut off by Malaki.

"It's alright, but… can the crew give me time. I've only just joined, and emotion is foreign to me." He monotoned, but it faltered every few words.

She nodded, hoping she hadnt hit a nerve that could break there, what could possibly be friendship.

Malaki sighed at her worried expression, knowing it would take time to ever talk about these things with them, or even her. He decided to use a technique he had practiced on the way here.

He called this technique 'Echo Web', it was his way of sensing other beings. Echo Web worked as a merger between Shinigami, and Arrancar sensing abilities. It combined the Shinigami technique of extending ones Reaitsu like tendrils, and reading the energy, and the Arrancar ability 'Pesquisa', which functions like a sonar, it uses radiating a pulse sent outwards that reacts with all living things nearby, allowing them to determine the location, and specific power levels.

Echo Web sends out tendrils that spread out over an area, then they each send out a pulse of Reaitsu, allowing the user not only exact location and power level, but an understanding of its affinity, it also is easier to tell the difference between different beings. It is also a passive power, meaning once active it can stay active as long as you can power it, it could effectively become your eyes, the downside is that it's a tiring technique, and shouldn't be used over 30 seconds.

As Malaki extended his senses to the beings of this city, he could immediately tell there were 4 devil fruit users on this island. Their affinities were, smoke, rubber, cutting (not an emo joke), and…

…slipperyness?

There was a nother power that he couldn't identify, it was definitley human, but it felt far stronger.

_Ok so that's Captain Smoker, Luffy, Buggy, and I think Alvida. The last one isn't anything I know of. Crap! Luffy, Buggy, and Alvida are already at the center of the city, with Smoker slowly approaching!_

"Oi! Malaki! You okay?" Nami said as she waved her hand across his face, as she had the past minute. Her hand was abruptly grabbed by Malaki's, as he stood up and looked to the skies.

Malaki grimaced, as the sky darkened, and thunder bellowed to the heavens. _Stupid, Stupid Stupid! How could I have not remembered this!_

Nami was confused why he just took her hand and stood, but it dint stop her from blushing from the assertiveness. "Oi! Whats wro-" but was interrupted as the air left her lungs, and the world blurred before her with the slight buzz of Shunpo. Just as fast as the feeling came it left, but she was still gasping for air.

Malaki arrived on the deck of The Going Merry and released her hand, as she fell to the ground. He looked at her with a little guilt for the unprepared movement. "Stay here." He said with a strong sense of finality before adding. "Buggy the clown, and Alvida are here after Luffy, please prepare the ship to sail. There is also a massive storm headed this way."

Nami's eyes widened at his words. _Buggy and Alvida? Crap, and there's a storm coming!_ All she could do was nod, as she was still struggling to stand upright.

Malaki Shunpo'd towards the center of the city with speed rivaling a certain admiral. When he got close he could hear shouts in the distance, although he couldn't make out the words, only one person sounded that stupid. _Buggy, that bastard!_

He was now at the center with Zoro and Sanji only meters away, ready for a fight.

The crew looked up to the platform, which on the top had Luffy's head on a lock as Buggy held a blade to his neck.

They made it just in time as Luffy proclaimed. "LISTEN! I'M THE MAN WHO WILL BE KING OF THE PIRATES!"

The sheer determination awed Malaki and the crew. Malaki then decided to make himself known. "Buggy the Clown!" He yelled with feelings he didn't even know he had. "RELEASE LUFFY, OR I WILL EAT YOUR PATHETIC HUMAN SOUL!" He yelled as he summoned his Shinigami Zanpakuto.

The pure hatred in his voice unnerved Alvida and the others to no extent, Buggy paled for a moment, the feeling he got from the guy he might actually be capable of carrying out that threat.

The other members of the crew almost jumped from the proclamation, but quickly regained there composure.

"Stop the execution!" Zoro demanded.

"SANJI! MALAKI! ZORO!" Luffy called out in delight.

"I'm glad you could make it Zoro! But your just a little to LATE!" Buggy shouted with what felt like sadism as he raised his sword.

Malaki was seeing red. Even though he knew he'd be okay, his anger clouded his thought as he Shunpo'd at unimaginable speeds, shocking even Zoro with his speed. He stopped just beside Luffy, staring right at a terrified Buggy.

Buggy was about to crap himself, this guy moved at speeds that even Devil Fruit users can't keep up with. _Shit! Shit! Shit! SHIT!_ He looked at the mans eyes, they were cold grey, but what truly frightened him was his scelara were pitch black. He quickly slammed the sword down with all his might before he was, taken out by this monster.

Malaki already had a beat on him, and with blinding speed smashed the blade in midair. He then proceeded to utterly destroy Luffy's chains with a simply strike, Luffy was about to thank him when he was suddenly kicked by Malaki, sending him crashing into Sanji. Malaki then grabbed Buggy by the throat, hatred in his eyes, and raised his own blade to strike.

To say Buggy was afraid would be an understatement. The presence of this guy alone was enough to put him on edge, but right now he was absolutely TERRIFIED. He felt like this guy was the physical embodiement of the devil. He was instilled with a fear so strong he couldn't move, Buggy could only close his eyes and wait for the end.

An end which never came because of a certain lightning strike.

In truth, Malaki had completely forgotten the lightning bolt that hit here.

And there they were…

…Thunder struck Malaki's Zanpakuto…

…and his Hierro wasn't active…

"**AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH HH!" **Came two cries of Buggy and Malaki.

The pain Malaki was feeling right now was comparable to an attack from Enel, Buggy was in the same condition.

The strike destroyed the platform, and their condition wasn't the best after that fall.

"MALAKI!"

"BANDAGES!"

"MALAKI!" came the calls of his fellow crew members.

All in all Malaki wasn't that injured, it just hurt like hell, he had a few scorch marks, but nothing healing couldn't handle. So he knocked the debri away along with a semiconscious Buggy, and stood.

Malaki didn't have time for games so he Shunpo'd at full force and completely annihilated the pirates in the area.

Alvida was terrified of him, _What is he?_ Until she felt a blade at her neck. "Yield or die." Came the cold voice of Malaki. She looked into his eyes, they were cold and menacing, piercing her very soul, it unnerved her greatly. "Hmm lets see you act that way after this!" she said, her arrogant voice intact, as she flaunted her beauty by removing her jacket, and taunted the crowd with her cleavage.

She was surprised when the blade only got closer, drawing blood, and instead of having a weakening effect, he only became colder. For the first time her beauty didn't affect someone, it was something she both loved and hated. She hated it because it hurt her ego, and loved it because it meant he wasn't swayed by beauty alone, a rare trait among men.

"You Bastard! Never harm a beautiful women!" Came the cry of the pervy cook, as he slammed a leg into Malaki, knocking him away a few feet.

Malaki honestly didn't care, so he just turned and Shunpo'd to the already leaving crewmates.

Zoro was already in a duel with Tashigi, so he zoomed forward, hoping to help Luffy.

His hopes were dashed when he saw they were already in combat, but Malaki felt that strange power once again, it was approaching quickly.

Malaki stopped, he wanted to be sure it wasn't an anomaly.

It arrived a few moments later, but the source of the strange power caused his eyes to widen.

It was Monkey D. Dragon!

Clad in his signature green cloak and all, the rain seemed to come down harder in his presence, as though a calling his name.

He suddenly grabbed smokers arm and that pole of his, and Luffy was being pushed into the ground.

Malaki wanted to get his attention for some reason, and just shouted, "DRAGON!"

He turned to look at me when lightning flashed, showing an impassive face.

"So… another anomaly eh?" He said grimly.

_OH… SHIT…_

His face changed from impassive to a Luffy like face, but more subdued. "You don't seem bad so…" he paused for a moment. "TAKE CARE OF MY BOY!" He exclaimed happily.

He looked up to the skies dramatically.

**WHOOSH!**

A sudden tornado of green blew through the entire island knocking what seemed like everyone away like dolls, the ground was even being ripped up!

Malaki and the crew found themselves not far from the Going Merry, Nami was calling for us to get on.

Luffy then darted off in the other direction, towards a house and began to stretch.

_Shit_, was the only thought of the crewmates, as they were launched airborne by their rubber captain.

We crashed into the mast and fell in a pile, nearly unconscious.

It was a painfull experience.

They began to set the ship and left to the storming sea. Nami pointed out the lighthouse that was on a huge cliff with something akin to glee.

"That's one of the guide posts! The entrance to the Grand Line must be somewhere ahead!" Nami explained.

"Do we have to go there in the middle of a freaking hurricane lke this?" Usopp cried, hugging the mast for dear life.

"Now or never Usopp" Malaki shouted.

They agreed.

"Ok then, I think we should say something to mark the occasion!" Sanji said, and he placed a barrel in front of him.

Malaki didn't know whether he wanted to cut into this prime moment, it was too amazing.

Sanji placed a foot on the barrel and said, "I'm going to the Grand Line to find the All Blue!"

Luffy followed and proclaimed. "I'm going to be King of the Pirates!"

"The worlds best swordsman!" Zoro cried.

I'm going so I can draw a map of the entire world!" Nami yelled.

I guess I'm going… to be a brave warrior of the sea!" Usopp said nervously.

There was a pause for a moment. "What about you Malaki?" Zoro asked.

There was room for his combat boots.

Malaki hesitated for a moment before placing his foot as well.

"I want to unlock my true power! And protect those close to me! My Crew! My Friends!-" He shouted the last one with tears of happiness in his eyes."-MY FAMILY!"

"I'LL NEVER LET YOU DOWN! EVER!"

The others were shocked by his words but smiled happily, they've never seen him show so much emotion.

Malaki was truly happy for the first time since his families death. He would never let them die, even at the cost of his own life.

He was somewhere where he wasn't feared or hated, like the many people before his crew.

A place he could honestly call home.

They raised there legs high and Luffy proclaimed. "AND NOW ,TO THE GRAND LINE!"

"YEAH!" They all shouted, even Malaki.

Thanks for the reviews guys, this chapter was a bit short, but I'll make up for it! Flames and reviews welcome!


	7. Chapter 7: Warship Arc Part 1!

Disclaimer: Don't own ONE PIECE

Chapter 7: Warship Arc Part 1!

[Going Merry, Malaki POV]

It's been two days since we proclaimed our dreams. I find myself practicing my kido; I've managed to learn some hado finally. So far I've gotten down Hado #1: Sho, Hado #4: Byakurai, and Hado #11: Tsuzuri Raiden. I've also learned Bakudo #9: Geki, Bakudo #21: Sekienton. I had also gotten a grip on mixed incantation so I was gonna give the crew a show today.

[Going Merry, General POV]

"Oi! Everyone! Get up here!" Came the shout of a certain Arrancar.

The crew members one by one made there way to the deck. It was around midday and it was nice and peaceful, unlike most of the time.

"What do you want Malaki?" asked an annoyed Zoro.

"I wanted to show you some new spells I learned." Malaki said.

This got the crews attention, especially Luffy and Usopp.

Luffy had stars in his eyes. "MAGIC TRICKS!"

Malaki knew he would react that way, but it was still annoying.

Usopp seemed rather analytical. "Can normal people learn these spells?" He wanted to know because if he could use these he'd be a lot stronger.

""Yes you can, but giving this power to a human comes at a price." Malaki said cryptically.

Usopp was kind of scared to ask because of the way he said it. "A-a-an w-what would t-that be?" He asked with no small amount of fear.

Now the others were listening, they were all curious about his powers, but he was a scary dude when he wanted to be.

"You will lose your physical body." Malaki answered grimly.

Usopp paled, along with all the others. "T-t-then why would someone want that power then!" Usopp cried. He didn't understand, wouldn't you be dead without your physical body?

"Because I will force your spirit form into ascension, but being technically immortal is lonely." He said. Not that he was super old or anything, but it had to be true, look at Brook.

"Spirit form? Ascension? Could you please explain?" Sanji asked.

"I'll do better… I'll show you." Malaki said as he summoned his Shinigami Zanpakuto and approached Nami.

The others were worried at what Malaki might do, but they trusted him nonetheless.

When Malaki was in front of Nami, he saw the worried look on her face. "Do not worry, I can reverse it easily." He said as he tapped the hilt of the massive blade to her forehead.

The bright, white light of Konso or 'Soul Burial'. It was used to send ghosts to the soul society, but when used on living beings it just pushes the soul out of the body.

The others stood there in shock as they saw the body of Nami drop lifelessly to the ground, and another with a chain bolted to her chest.

Nami stood there staring at her own body. It was a disturbing experience for her. She looked at her chest when she felt something dangle there; she was even more shocked when she saw a chain hanging at the center of her chest.

"I removed the soul from her body, humans can see it for reasons I don't fully understand, but from this stage there are only two paths you can take." Malaki began to explain. "One, you become a shinigami, the chain disappears, or two you become a hollow."

"A Hollow?" Nami asked concerned by the name.

"Yes, a hollow. A hollow is born when the chain of fate-"He gestured to Nami's chain. "-eats itself, or is removed. The chain is then replaced with a hole, representing its heartlessness, and you gain a mask, which represents your hearts power. When someone becomes a hollow they usually lose all their memories from there past life, and they commonly hunt, and eat the souls of those who were close to them in life. You will then endlessly hunt souls for eternity until you're killed." He finished.

The group paled at his words, but Zoro seemed to remember something.

"You said a hole represents heartlessness right?" Zoro asked, Malaki nodded, not understanding his point. "Then what about yours?" He continued his hands on his blades. The others seemed to be on guard as well.

[Going Merry, Malaki POV]

It was my turn to pale, I felt so stupid for talking now, and little hurt at how they reacted.

I decided that I needed to set things straight with them, but first Nami.

I grabbed her human body by the neck, and I saw the others tense again. Nami seemed afraid, but it subsided once she saw me lighten my grip, and raise it to her body.

Blue energy intertwined the two separate bodies as Nami's soul reentered her body. She gasped as she fell into my grip grabbing my shoulders as not to fall; she unknowingly pressed her assets on my chest. I blushed from the contact but the others couldn't see it, _Thank God._

She apparently realized this as well, judging from the blush that rose on her cheeks, as she pushed me away. I understood the reaction, but it still hurt.

They seemed to notice the hurt in my eyes, as they eased there senses.

"Sorry, I didn't mean it like that." Nami said, and the others nodded. All except for Luffy who was just sitting there staring off into the sea.

I calmed myself, as not to get angry at them for there actions. I couldn't blame them anyways.

I turned to Zoro. "I am an anomaly, a perfect mix between Shinigami, Human, and Hollow. I am the last of my kind, technically because I'm the only one of my kind." I monotoned.

The others flinched, likely realizing they hit a nerve, and just stood there.

It was like this for a minute until Luffy shouted, "Hey! Look! A bunch a birds over there!"

We all turned to Luffy then the flock. My eyes widened.

_Oh no! I forgot about Apis!_

I turned to the Nami, "Nami." I started, gaining her attention. "Please get some blankets."

She stared at me curiously. "Why?" I pointed to the flock of birds.

"A child." I stated, her eyes widened as well as she rushed below deck.

"Luffy, please grab the object over there." He didn't need to be told twice, as he reeled an arm back and shot it forward.

Sanji and Usopp got out of the way, knowing what would happen, while Zoro and I didn't move.

Luffy's arm retracted at break neck speeds. "It's a big one."

When it reached us, I raised a hand into a fist a charged it. "Bringer Fist." I murmured, as the telltale green rings appeared.

Luffy's whip like arm slammed the child directly in the center of the green rings.

The girl was floating in midair for a moment before the rings dissipated and she crashed into my chest.

She lay sprawled on my chest, I felt something akin to protective instinct as I sat up, and gently lay her down in front of me.

She was barely conscious, her eyes seemed to dull for my liking, so I decided to try healing her. Slowing down to look over her, I saw she wore a weird white hat and a yellow dress with circles on the bottom. She was paled from fever and malnutrition,

Healing with Reaitsu involves pushing it into a wound to help someone recover.

I raised my hands above her stomach, and began to push my Reaitsu in small amounts into the wound. My hands light up with blue energy, it wasn't my pure Reaitsu, it was mine making hers grow temporarily to heal herself.

"What is that?" Nami asked.

I jumped up in surprise and relaxed just as fast. "I'm trying to heal her, but we should take her to a bed."

She nodded and handed me a stark white blanket, which I took and rapped around the child.

I stood up and kept the child close to my chest in a fatherly way, _the hell is up with me today._

I had been acting unusual around Apis, but it was instinctual, like I was just supposed to.

I ignored it for now and went to the infirmary; I noticed her smirking beside me. "What's so funny?" I monotone.

Her smirk widened as she eyed Apis, "Oh nothing." She answered, that answer only irked me more.

I was about to ask again when I felt a small pair of arms try to wrap around me, my eyes locked onto Apis. She was smiling in her sleep, and my eyes softened as my grip tightened protectively around her, so she was being cradled.

I saw Nami smirk become a smile and her cheeks tinted red as her eyes went from me to Apis in a thoughtful way.

I ignored it as we entered the infirmary. I gently took the blanket off of her and pulled out the sheets of the bed.

I lightly placed her down, and then leaned her head on the pillow. "Nami can you make sure no one enters, and please ask Sanji to make something for her to eat?" I said in a gentle voice.

Nami seemed shocked at the sound of my voice as she simply nodded dumbly and left. I raised my hands above her again, and began to heal her again.

Healing felt weird, it felt like the little girl was using my Reaitsu to heal like it should, but it also felt like she was familiarizing her self with it, and changing accordingly to fit with mine. It just didn't feel natural, like she was reaching out to my own power.

But… I digress, and continued to heal her while ignoring the strange sensation.

[Going Merry, General POV]

About two hours later Apis began to stir, while Malaki had already finished healing her body, and Sanji was cooking lunch. Luffy and the others sat around the room, waiting for Apis to wake.

Apis sat up and slowly gained her bearings, while Malaki silently for her to speak the others stared at her for a moment.

''You certainly look more lively when we found you'' Nami told her over the newspaper and also gave her a smile.

''I bet you're hungry. I'm whipping up some soup now'' Sanji informed her.

She seemed to look around the ship and grinned. ''Yes!''

''We found you passed out on a half sunken boat, there was a huge storm yesterday and I'm glad nothing serious happened to you.'' Malaki said with unusual tenderness. ''My name is Malaki, the long nosed one is Usopp'' He pointed at Usopp. ''The guy making your soup in the stove is Sanji'' The blond waved at the girl. ''The guy with the swords and a haramaki is Zoro'' The small mutter of 'Shut up' went unnoticed. ''The women with orange hair is Nami and the straw hat wearing boy is-" He was cutoff.

''I'm Luffy! The captain of this pirate ship!'' Luffy grinned at her, but the realization that the little girl is in a pirate ship scared her.

''Pirates!'' She had her mouth agape which made Malaki chuckle.

''Yeah! We're heading to the Grand Line!''

She comically froze, though the crew as a bit worried, except Malaki of course.

The laid back Zoro decided to make his voice known. ''What're you gonna do with that kid?''

The captain went into a small thinking moment. ''Well now that you mentioned it... what should we do?''

There was silence for a moment as Malaki and Apis stared at one another, a strange bond between the two telling each to trust each other.

What's your name child?" Malaki asked, though he knew he couldn't just say it.

Apis stared at the man, he was definitely strange judging from what he wore, but she couldn't judge. The strange part for her was that she felt compelled to answer him, as though he were family, or even closer then that. She tried to ignore the feeling, but it just welled back up.

So she did the only thing she could…

…ran as far as possible away from him.

[Nighttime, Malaki POV]

Apis still refuses to speak with us and I decided to get another journal entry.

Entry is as follows…

**Entry #2**

**I've gotten down Hado #1: Sho, Hado #4: Byakurai, and Hado #11: Tsuzuri Raiden. I've also learned Bakudo #9: Geki, Bakudo #21: Sekienton. I had also gotten a grip on mixed incantation so I was going to experiment with that later.**

**The egg I carry is still dormant, or inactive, my hope is that it might be a familiar. Meaning it is just familiarizes itself with my soul to change accordingly, but that's just a guess.**

**I've been thinking about what happened about what happened at Logue town. I saw red when Luffy was in danger, even though I knew the outcome. I could feel my hollow instinct yelling at me to destroy him, and I gave into the impulse. I need to figure out how to speak with the entities in my inner world before this gets any worse.**

**Also when I was healing Apis, there was a strange phenomenon in which we began to bond through Reaitsu, now I have a ridiculous fatherly sense towards her. I doubt this is normal, but it could be the price for healing humans in this world. If so then I will have to restrict myself from healing outside the crew. I am hoping the effect will wear off eventually, but I doubt it. She also seems to be affected by this bond of mutual trust. Further study of this phenomenon is necessary.**

**The only anomalies thus far have been friendly, considering it was a music contest. It seems that not all anomalies are violent. There also appear to be some that carry a resemblance in all aspects to people of my world, Jack for example. He carried a near perfect resemblance to Bob Marley, even his music style.**

**I've been thinking about my choice in clothing. While I won't be discarding it, I should search for clothing that is less… super obvious. My own choice of clothing is unique, making it easier to point out then Luffy himself. I'll search upcoming islands for clothing.**

**I have learned how to break food down into pure energy, using both Hollow and Fullbring abilities, by drawing out its soul then absorbing it. This method is much simpler then eating.**

**Lastly I've been thinking on the possibility that because of my existence that there may be even more story arcs then there originally were. If so then this road will be much harder to travel.**

Now, I was waiting in the darkest corner of the room Apis was in, she was aware of my presence as I was hers. It was a side effect from this bond we share.

She seemed to ignore my presence, or just didn't mind it.

Her stomach grumbled loudly, earning reddened cheeks.

I chuckled and walked up to her. "Would you like something to eat?" I said, raising a guiding hand to her.

I was surprised that she took it immediately; her head was looking to the ground in shame, as she murmured a small "yes please."

I frowned under my mask; she didn't deserve such degrading actions.

We walked to the kitchen stopping just before the door. Apis looked to me, like a daughter would her father questioningly.

I dropped to one knee, so I was eye to eye with her. I let go of her hand and clapped both of mine on her shoulders. "No one here will hurt you. I promise." I spoke with tenderness I would usually never speak with.

She seemed swayed by my words, as her head lifted and she nodded, a small smile adorning her face.

I smiled as well as I stood up taking her hand once again.

We proceeded into the kitchen, and I stopped, remembering the trap placed for Luffy.

"Child, could you hold your breath?" I asked.

She seemed confused, but complied nonetheless. With a blur of Shunpo we were right in front of the refrigerator.

She was gasping for breath for a moment, while I held her up.

She steadied herself, "How…" she seemed at a loss of words.

I smirked at her astonishment. "I'm a Battlemage." Was my simple reply.

Her eyes widened at my words. "B-b-battlemage?" she looked completely baffled.

I nodded as I opened the refrigerator, and took out some ingredients to make a simple sandwich.

When I finished it I handed it to Apis, who quickly took it.

I couldn't help but smile as she devoured the sandwich. A moment later a loud snapping sound came from behind, followed by a shriek of equal proportion. We turned to see Luffy stuck in a trap like a rat. Someone flicked the lights on and it revealed Sanji, accusing Luffy's 'Sleepwalking'.

''Luffy. How many times do I have to tell you? Could you just listen for once?'' Sanji complained and looked to me and the mysterious little girl having a small talk. The cook narrowed his eyes at the food in her hand. ''How did you get past the traps?''

I stared at him blankly, something that attracted the Apis's attention. ''I can move at the speed of sound. Are you really surprised?" Sanji stared at me a little and turned to the girl quickly eating the small meal. Deciding to let it go for once he also made a grub for Luffy.

I turned to the still shy girl. "Why do you trust me?"

She froze for a moment, but her stomach grumbled more and went to taste some of Sanji's dish, completely ignoring me. Immediately she praised the blond cook who gave a small bow to it.

I was contemplating bashing the child's head in, but decided against it.

''So she's finally come around?'' Nami asked from the door.

"Yes, she's a really interesting one." I smiled under my mask.

Some of the conversation went by arguing about Luffy's eating habits and the mysterious sleepwalking. Nami, thankfully talked with the girl more and told her that people are usually afraid of pirates.

''You won't sell me off?'' The little girl asked shyly.

Usopp was surprised. "You thought we would?''

''Everyone must've seemed pretty scary, eh?'' Zoro asked, but the girl shook her head and pointed to me.

''He wasn't'' The crew looked at me, a smile hidden under my mask. ''Malaki-san wasn't scary, he was actually nice.'' She smiled at him and bowed, but she didn't seem finished yet. "I don't know why, but I feel like were family or something like that." She said shyly.

Everyone turned to me, curiosity written all over there faces.

I sighed, "I have been feeling the same thing." I rubbed the bridge of my nose. "Ever since I found you on that boat, I find myself compulsively wanting to comfort and protect you in an almost fatherly manner."

Everyone seemed shocked by the words; after all, it isn't everyday strangers carry a father daughter bond.

The little girl got out of her stupor and stared at me. She made an awkward smile that went into a full one and looked at the ships cook. ''I want more please!''

''Right away, madam''

''Me too!'' The hungry rubber man shouted at the cook.

''DO IT YOURSELF, BASTARD!''

''Meanie...''

[Next Morning, General POV]

The crew was once again ready to move, when there was a huge explosion coming from the gallery.

''What was that?'' Nami shouted from her cabin.

Looking at the gallery door, there came the same little girl down in soot and dizzy.

''Oi, what the heck's going on down there?'' Sanji asked the girl from the crows nest.

''I'm making breakfast!'' She looked at everyone. ''Everyone, breakfast is served!''

''Ooh, food'' Luffy practically drooled.

''What the hell kind of food?'' The swordsman asked himself.

Malaki smirked, "You'll find it… interesting."

Zoro was wary now; whenever Malaki spoke like that bad crap usually happened.

When they got the mentioned breakfast, it was actually a weird, burned something that smells funny.

''Ehehe... you made it all by yourself?'' The navigator looked at the girl with a nervous smile. ''It has a rather... unique appearance''

''Time to eat!''

The girl with still the weird outfit told them that on top of saving her, they also fed her. ''So from now on, I'll do anything I can to help''

Malaki looked to her, "It was unnecessary, but welcome nonetheless." He said as he raised a hand above the food, and it began to break down into energy, which he absorbed through his hand.

''Are you sure this is edible?'' Zoro stared at the food and could've sworn it moved. Nami got angry at that and forced the food down the swordsman's throat.

''But you really think its ok to eat this?'' Usopp asked her.

''Whaddya talking about? It's great'' The captain munched the breakfast down.

Looking at the rubber man the crew started to eat one by one. Needless to say, it was too spicy and chunked water down their throats.

"I agree with Luffy, it's excellent." Malaki said, his killing intent pushed towards the others. "Right guys?" He said in a voice that clearly stated "Say yes or die" He looked to Apis, the killing intent seemingly vanished. "Little one, you haven't told us your name?"

She blushed from embarrassment, "Apis! My names Apis."

He found the display rather cute. "Apis, a beautiful name." He turned to the others, his cold voice returning. "You should show respect and eat the food she made." Sanji offered Nami a different plate that earned a death glare from Malaki.

Apis started to protest that there's no need to force anyone to eat and offered her assistant to help them on the ship.

Malaki thought for a moment, _this bond… could I experiment with it?_

"If you would like to help so badly, then how about you assist me with an experiment?" Malaki asked her, the crew gave wary and worried looks. "It won't put anyone's life in danger." He said, ignoring there looks. "So?" Apis nodded furiously, wanting to understand the feeling she had around him. "But first things first, why were you on a raft in the middle of the sea?"

Apis told them that she was running away from a marine ship during the storm three days ago. She said that she can't really tell them the real reason.

''It's really that bad?'' Usopp mused.

"If you want our help we will, so don't be afraid to ask us alright?" Malaki told her.

''But could you at least tell us where you're from?'' came the voice of Nami. Apis told them that she's from Gunkan Island and Nami took a map to look for it. She explained that it's called Gunkan Island, because the silhouette of the island looks like a battleship. The island is located near Grand Line and it's not too far from their journey. ''What do you wanna do? Wanna go home to Gunkan Island?'' Nami questioned Apis. ''We were planning on going straight into the Grand Line, but...''

Apis looked down. ''Me? You went through the trouble of saving me and I know it will be a burden, but I want to go home to my island! I'm sorry, that sounds selfish. If you let me get on any ship we meet along the way, I'll manage somehow...''

Malaki grabbed her shoulders; Apis looked eye to eye with him and was surprised by the seriousness and anger in his eyes. "Do not dare call yourself a burden." He said harshly. "We bought you here by choice, and everything we have done so far was by choice. You are no more a hindrance then Luffy's eating habits." As he continued Apis had tears going down her cheek.

"Besides, you never know…" He paused looking to Luffy. "… There might just be an _adventure_." The last word caught the rubber mans attention.

''Yosh! Off to Gunkan Island for adventures!''

''Captains orders everyone." Malaki said with a hidden smirk.

''Really? You'll really take me back to Gunkan Island?''

''Yup'' The captain replied with the grin still on his face.

''Great! Thank you, everyone!'' and started to jump up and down. The view made the crew happy, where she thanked them all and she didn't know what possessed her, but she hugged Malaki, an action that made him tense and the crew worry.

They were even more surprised when he returned it, the reason was beyond him or anyone there, she then told them she'd make breakfast everyday, Usopp and Zoro paled.

[Few Minute Later, Malaki POV]

I was leaning on the ships railing, practicing my Reaitsu control again. I was bored, and I didn't feel like learning kido today. So I pretty much tried containing my Reaitsu in front of me, then compress it as far as it could, which was how a cero basically worked.

"Um, are you okay? You haven't moved an inch." Came a small voice, I turned and saw Apis looking me right in the eye.

"I was practicing my powers." I simply said.

She didn't seem to understand, "But you haven't moved at all. How are you practicing?"

I sighed and power downed my Reaitsu. "It's kind of like meditating. My powers come from the soul itself, so it's invisible right now, so I've basically practicing molding it in different ways." I explained.

She seemed to understand it now. "Oh! So your powers are like a part of you?" I nodded, "And there invisible unless you mold it into magic?" Not completely right but I nodded anyways. "So cool! Can other people do this?"

I shook my head to the negative; she was about to question further, when we heard Usopp cry something about marines.

We turned to where Usopp had indicated and found an entire fleet of marine ships, Apis began to panic, which was reasonable, but I could probably take them with a few Hado spells.

''I bet they're here for mine and Malaki's head.'' Luffy looked at the marines indifferently.

''That is reasonable, but to send so many?'' I sighed in annoyance.

''They just know how tough we are to beat!'' Luffy grinned and slapped me in the back hard. ''We're just too strong to handle!''

I just saw Apis take a step back. ''Those ships are from the 8th Division'' We all looked at her to clarify more. ''Those are the marines I ran away from!''

Just then, three canons just were heard and just as many cannonballs were coming straight for our ships.

I smirked, _Never did show them that magic trick yesterday._

I raised my right index and middle finger in preparation for a spell. "Hado #4: Byakurai" I murmured, the others looked to me in astonishment as blue energy spark around my finger tip, then shot forward in a large beam of electric blue energy.

The attack engulfed the first two cannonballs; the following shockwave between the two pushed the last one off course as it sailed above us and off into the distance.

Apis and the others gawked at me; they had never seen the attack before.

''Attention pirate vessel! Stop your ship immediately! You've had your warning shot, the next round will not miss!'' The warning came from the marine fleet ordering us to stop.

"Are they idiots?'' I glared at the marine ships.

Zoro looked from the marines to his captain. ''What do we do, Luffy? If you're gonna fight them, do it now!''

The next words made me smirked monstrously. ''Yeah, let's fight!'' What I noticed though was Apis looking at the seagulls and saying that another big wind is coming.

''Zoro, Malaki, face the sails south! Usopp, Sanji, turn us hard starboard! Now!'' Nami began barging orders at everyone. I grew serious and nodded; I went with Zoro to face the sails south. Just then a squall hit us and the ships made a mad dash to the south.

Seeing Luffy and Usopp boast about their victory. I merely gave a slight nod and looked at the seagulls in the crows nest. Looking to my left I noticed Zoro doing the same and gave his own nod. Continuing to stare at the seagulls I noticed Nami addressing me.

''What's wrong Malaki? You and Zoro have been acting serious for a while now''

Zoro just shook his head and went back to sleep. I was thinking on what was gonna happen next. My photographic memory can be annoying some days.

''Oi! Where's the cool wind?'' Luffy shouted.

_OH SHIT!_

I was freaking out right now. "Everyone, get the paddles and row like hell!" I Shunpo'd to the storage and took the paddles and tossed them to the other members of the crew. They were protesting, which annoyed me greatly. "Do it now!" They continued to protest. "Fine then! Nami, tell them why the Calm Belt isn't a very friendly place!" That got her attention, her eyes widened. She quickly went to her map.

''This place is...'' Nami was about to finish when a huge tremor came under the ship and something emerging from the waters. At first there was just water rising, but when it went fell it revealed a mass amount of sea kings and we were on the snout of one. I jumped down and noticed everyone in shock and Nami running at me, where she gave a trembling hug to my waist, and terrified yelp she then started to cry.

''The Calm Belt is a Sea King breeding ground, and for only the _giant_ ones too...'' I was terrified because of how many there were here. "The reason you can't cross the Calm Belt is because of them.'' She finished and tightened her grip on my waist.

"Everyone listen." I stated in a deadly serious tone. "Don't move or even whisper. The moment the sea kings leave we have to row like hell." It didn't seem like people listen since Usopp basically shrieked in fear. _Should've seen that coming._

''THE FROG'S COMMINNNG!'' Luffy shouted and briefly saw Apis fall from the ship when the beast that we currently occupied started to move. He stretched his arm and grabbed Apis where he directed her far away from the golden frog's mouth.

''Luffy, have you eaten a Devil's Fruit?'' She got her affirmative from the rubber man and ordered him to direct to the cow-looking Sea Kings nose, where she pulled a nose hair. The beast started to cry and tremble, when Luffy was about to throw Apis at Zoro, he miscalculated and the girl was about to crash into the mast. I noticed this and Shunpo'd with Nami in toe and caught Apis, and Shunpo'd back to ground.

"Hold on." I monotoned despite the situation. They did so just as the massive sea king sneezed, sending us off like a rocket.

''Wohooo! Were flying!'' The rubber man shouted in glee whereas Apis and Nami were on the verge of throwing up. Skidding through the bunch of Sea Kings we were finally off the Calm Belt.

"We've stopped." I stated. I noticed Apis and Nami's grip tightened further, constricting poor me. "You… can… let go… now." I managed to wheeze out. They both seemed to realize what they were doing as they let go of me immediately with blushes. Nami walked away as quickly as possible, while Apis just stood next to me and took my hand. Luffy, like myself seemed generally unaffected by the whole ordeal, Zoro lying down from all these troubles, Usopp was trying to regain their composure and Sanji looking at me with narrowed eyes.

''Alright, full sail to Gunkan Island!'' Luffy pointed at a random direction, when Nami corrected him and we set the sails.

I was bored so I decided to train a little more on my Reaitsu control. I was still trying to make a damn Cero, but apparently it's an instinctually learned power as well.

''Ooh, a ship! It's Huge!'' Luffy shouted from Merry's head. There was some muttering about the others at Luffy's enthusiasm, but he and I ignored it.

''That's Gunkan Island! It looks like a battleship so we call it that way'' The fog started to clear as we closed in on the island and heard people yell there 'pirates are here'. Looking closely I saw people there armed with shovels and spears.

As we docked the ship, Apis was first to get off it and waved at the surprised villagers. When we got down on the firm ground, Luffy stared at the villagers making them uneasy.

''Hey, you there'' I could tell the villagers were tense. ''Is there a yakiniku **(smoked meat)** store on this island?''

''Huh?'' ''Who are these guys..?

Apis then started to explain that even though were pirates, we're the _good_ pirates and that she was saved by us. The villagers then told her that some marines are still nearby and looking for her.

''Apis!'' Looking at the new voice, it belonged to an elderly man that had the same out as the villagers with a cane. ''Come here this instant''

The little girl ran at the old man while shouting his name. ''Grandpa Bokuden!'' and gave a big hug at him.

The old man walked over to us and thanked for saving Apis while offering a warm welcome at his house.

''You're welcome, but you don't have to do such a thing.'' I said politely, but he insisted nonetheless, an eager Luffy and made his way to the small cottage of the old man, where he prepared us some buns with pork fillings.

''There, everything is prepared, now we just have to wait'' other then me, the rest of the hungry guys were excited and practically dancing, but shot down when the old man told us it'll take 4 to 5 hours.

''I'm so hungry~'' Luffy began to sing a horrible self made song about him starving.

''Oi! Bakudo-san, why was Apis-Chan kidnapped by the marines? Any idea, since there has to be one'' I asked. It's not everyday you see 'loyal' and 'justified' marines kidnapping children.

The old man didn't seem to know, so he also asked Apis the same question but got the same reply as always apparently.

''You did tell us there was a reason they kidnapped you, didn't you?'' I slightly narrowed my eyes at her.

''Oh, that was a lie...'' She seemed a bit hesitant to reply after my glare. The old man started to jibber about ancient legends about dragons called Sennenryuu **(Millennium Dragons**) and that their bones are believed to be an elixir for eternal youth.

Seeing the old man starting to begin a long story, Apis was beginning to frown. I reached a hand over and placed my hand lightly on her head, she reached a hand back up in turn. It seemed to reassure her, as her frown…

…turned upside down.

…

…not the best choice of words was it?

I honestly didn't want to listen to the old mans gibberish, so I Shunpo'd out of the room and outside. I went to the roof and just meditated, clearing my mind of everything to open myself to the world.

Some 3 hours later, I sensed Luffy slumping his way to the small cottage, probably to devour the buns. After I heard a small thud and Apis dragging a large sack full of what i assumed were the buns, _finally time for some action_. With that I began to follow where she was going with all the food.

It didn't take too long when she went trough a small human-sized hole. The hole continued to the mountains where it showed a road going up-hills. The long roads eventually lead to another hole but this one was bigger, it leads into the mountain. It wasn't that far when I saw_**a Dragon**_. A damn old one at that. She began to feed the buns at it, I watched from midair for a while in silent interest as I tried to identify the creature's power, while she talked about us to the old dragon.

''Yo, Apis! Who ya talkin' to?'' I heard Luffy shout at the cave.

''Don't shout out suddenly like that!'' Another voice, this time from Nami. Directing my eyes back to Luffy who was staring at the old dragon wide-eyed and Nami shrieking in fear. I finished my sketch and watched the weird show they were putting with Luffy petting the dragon. The rubber fool somehow managed to understand the creature.

''Ryuuji says it's okay to be friends with you Luffy.'' Apis seemed to translate at him. ''He knows you're a good person.''

I decided that I've been here long enough, so I released the Reaitsu keeping me in midair and drop to the ground with elegance. The others seemed shocked by my sudden appearance.

"WHAT!" was Apis's only reaction?

Luffy smiled at her, "He's my Battlemage!" he exclaimed.

The dragon thing looked at me more warily then the others.

''Ryuuji says that you're a good person, but your soul is monstrously powerful, demonic even.'' Apis translated for it and looked at me, the awkwardness eventually passed. She then told us how she met the dragon that she'll somehow find his home and bring him there.

''Yosh! Then I'll take you there!'' The captain announced.

''Excellent idea my captain. How do you plan to do that?'' I asked sarcastically while he was seriously thinking about it.

''Luffy! Were you listening? She said Lost Island sunk into the sea!'' Nami voiced her thoughts where Luffy said that the old dragon can somehow tell.

''Wonderful idea captain!''

Nami just palmed her face. ''To an island that isn't on any map. Well if you say so, let's go!''

''Yosh! Let's go get our nakama to help the old dragon...'' A small cry of 'Ryuuji!' From Apis, I continued ''...yeah that.''

When we returned everyone was asleep, except the old man who, despite no one listening was still talking. Usopp had a small bubble of snot on his nose, it was absolutely repulsive.

''What? Morning already?'' Zoro yawned; he was already when he first sat down.

Sanji started to mumble something about old men, long stories and sleeping.

Now that they were all awake I was getting ready to fill them in when a man ran through the door yelling about the marines. I heard Nami telling everyone to come with her.

When we got back to the cave, the various looks from the others were humoring. I saw Luffy acting like the child he was around the dragon he could apparently understand. The rest of the conversation and Usopp's plea of being rescued from the dragon's mouth.

I wasn't really listening because I could sense another devil fruit user approaching. I used Echo Web for a moment and the attribute seemed to be wind, but not quite. I was snapped from my musing when Sanji snapped at me.

"Oi! Bandages, you hear Nami-san!" He exclaimed.

I waved a hand in dismissal instead of answer, much to curly brows annoyance. I decided that I'd try something new. I summoned my Shinigami Zanpakuto; I began to charge nearly a quarter of my Reaitsu into my arm and my Zanpakuto. I pulled my arm break in preparation for the attack, then Shunpo'd about a foot forward, using the extra speed I swung my Zanpakuto.

There was silence on this side of the forest…

…

…

Suddenly every tree for a mile ahead of me dropped like… well logs.

I began to gather one by one, it wasn't very difficult since I can just Shunpo, but that didn't make it any less annoying.

After what seemed like forever we had the damn thing finished, all we needed now was a dragon.

It didn't take the others too long for our ship to be seen in the sea. The old dragon was successfully hoisted by Luffy, Sanji and myself. Apis then started to panic about marines in the mountain.

''Ahh... They're earlier than I expected.'' Nami muttered.

''But what are we going to do?'' Apis panicked in fear of the marines.

''Relax; we still have Luffy, Sanji and Malaki.'' Nami pointed at me.

I looked to the distance and I could see a marine fleet approaching our ship, much to my crewmate's dismay.

I was clearly gonna do something to ease their worries, so I raised a finger at one of the closest ships hull. With the small mutter of "Byakurai" a massive bolt of spiritual electricity launched from my fingers and into the marine ships hull. It was bathed in flames rather fast as it began to sink from the puncture.

I turned to varied expressions. Luffy's starry eyed face, an amazed Nami (I did shoot lightning), an annoyed Sanji (mad cause I impressed Nami), and a gawking Apis. I know they saw the attack earlier, but then again it is pretty amazing.

I calmly sat down on the cart preparing for the ride. I heard punches and kicks a short distance away, I saw it to my captain facing off with a man with fancy suit, a weird purple hair and long fingernails was standing there. I used the Shunpo'd right in between the guys. ''What's going on?''

It seems that I snapped Luffy from some kind of trance. ''It's Erik the Gay Man, right? I heard you''

The area went silent and I stared impassively at the man, _so this is what Erik the whirlwind looks like in real life? He's just as terrible._

I saw he was doing some weird stuff with his two outstretched fingers, until he swung it at us. The sudden wind went past us when small deep wounds appeared in our arms and legs, I healed mine with ease, but scars remained.

''I got it. He means 'kamaitachi' (Whirlwind scythe)'' Sanji cleared. Erik then started to boast about the sharpness of his attacks. I just ignored the rest. I charged my finger tips with Reaitsu and pointed them at the ground. "Hado #1: Sho" I murmured as my fingertips were engulfed in a light blue light. Erik was outlined with the same light as he slammed face first into the ground.

Luffy's eyes lit up like stars yet again as Erik stood up, baffled by my powers.

"What Devil Fruit did you eat?" He asked pointing a finger to me.

"I didn't, I'm just not a human being." I said in a sinister tone that sent a shiver down the spine of anyone who heard.

''Yes! They're set!'' I heard Nami shout from behind us. ''We're leaving! Ezek-Kun, Sanji, Luffy!'' Those said we ran back at where the girls and the dragon were. Taking the front seat next to Nami and Sanji giving us a boost we went down the slope in full speed. Erik just managed to get out of the way from Luffy's outstretched punch.

''Watch out! A boulder!'' Apis yelled. Luffy got into action and smashed it with a barrage of punches, leveling it into smaller pieces of rubble. I started to cut the flying boulders away from Nami who was gripping my arm by now. As we still regained out speed until we arrived at the slope I felt like I was flying. We started skidding across the sea until we stopped and laughed in tiredness.

It didn't take long for the Going Merry to pick us up and tie the cart to the ship.

''That should do it'' Usopp said and tightened the rope around the ships rails.

I just wanted to meditate and clear my mind so I turned towards the others. "I'll take guard duty. Ok?" I said, but the others new it was a demand not a question.

They nodded the affirmative and I Shunpo'd to the crows nest. I sat cross legged and closed my eyes pushing out the rest of the world.


	8. Chapter 8: Lost Island! Injured Luffy?

Disclaimer: Don't own ONE PIECE

Warship Arc Part 2! Others?

[Going Merry, Malaki POV]

I was still meditating, the peace when I do this is amazing, and everything just becomes clearer. The downside is that I am completely unaware of the things around me and when I'm broken out of this peace I basically jump.

That's what happened when a certain long nosed bastard yelled.

"Oi! Malaki, get down here!"

My composure broke as I jumped up and fell on my side,_ I'm gonna have to make up some rules or something.  
_

I stood up and looked down to Usopp, waiting for the reason he woke me up as my killing intent grew, thickening the air.

Usopp was oblivious to my killing intent as he continued, ''The Lost Island has been found, apparently the old ton of feathers remembered something and the guys said they found a weird ships shadow on the front.''

My eye twitched in annoyance and my dark aura receded. I looked forward and I could see the shadow off in the distance. I could feel an illusive force lining the area ahead so I prepared myself. I began swirling my Reaitsu so it became more active and ready for use. I Shunpo'd to deck level in preparation.

I could actually see the energy that made up the barrier, and then my mask suddenly felt heavy so I decided against m better judgment to remove my mask for a little while. The moment I took it off I heard a shriek from Apis.

I looked to her nearly terrified face and smiled, which scared her even more. I felt my face and it felt hard I tapped it and an echo resounded. _Don't tell me…_

I felt my entire face and I found that I was right, there was a piece of a hollow mask on my jaw. I immediately put my mask on, not wanting to scare the others.

The others thankfully didn't notice as they gave me and Apis a questioning look.

I gave Apis a look that conveyed my silent message.

"Nothing, nothing." She said hurriedly.

I sighed in relief and turned to the crew, "Don't stop, its safe to move forward.'' Nami asked from the crows nest seeing the rubber mans floating hand.

_Did she say Kun?_

''I'm sure'' she was hesitant, but slowly nodded. As we slowly crossed the barrier it was in a matter of seconds as foggy as Gunkan Island. There were a lot of questions coming from the crew so I decided to clear some of it. ''Everyone listen, the weird barrier we just went through is just an illusionary barrier. One of my people could use it to disorientate people or hide something, but not something this massive." I saw Apis brighten up at that and the murmurs dying down.

_The bastard Aizen, I wonder…_

Suddenly there came a storm and rain out of nowhere and the ship began rocking around the storm. Barging orders at everyone and summoning clones to help around the ship and look after the old dragon, we saw thunder crashing down to the sea and it was getting worse by the minute. Usopp shouted that he saw an island and we instantly made our course there.

Hours later, but was actually dozens of minutes we managed to get out of the storm and saw that it was surrounding the whole island. Seeing it a bit closer the island was littered with dragon-shaped ruins and other mystical beasts.

Docking the Going Merry on the shore nearby we set off to look around more. The place looked more like a jungle than ruins, I could sense a great darkness emitting from this place, but there was a small pocket of pure light energy. The rest I tuned out and Shunpo'd into one of the highest ruins and tried to sense the source of the energies in this place.

The light energy seemed to be at the top of the mountain, but the darkness seemed to have no direct source, it was surrounding the center of the island with pure darkness.

That very same darkness seemed to be moving upwards, towards the ground.

''Malaki-Kun! Were leaving, come help here a bit'' Nami shouted at me from where she stood. I nodded my head and Shunpo'd down in a blur of speed. Summoning my Reaitsu into my arms I began to pull the rope on the dragon's cart. The others stared at me, wondering how it was possible for just me to be pulling a damn dragon.

I saw Nami and Apis slow down so they were on either side of me; they both had an interest in this island. Luffy, Zoro and the others walking a few meters ahead of us.

I suddenly stopped as I felt the dark energy reacting to my own energy, like it was evaluating me.

"Malaki-Kun why'd you stop?" Nami asked.

I ignored her as I became serious, "Sanji, Luffy! Take the ropes for me and leave now! Zoro, take Apis and Nami with you!" They looked at me strangely, but remembered the last time they ignored his warning. They became serious and did as I asked, even Sanji without protest.

"Malaki-Kun! What's going on?" asked a baffled Nami.

"This place is corrupted and humans will be killed by the creatures that lurk here." I said, deadly serious.

"CREATURES!" she shrieked in response.

"Yes, now go." I monotoned.

A few moments later they were all gone, leaving me with whatever this dark force was. I summoned my blades in preparation for the battle that is likely to come. The light in the area seemed to darken despite the sun until it was as dark as the night.

I instantly knew whatever was here was powerful, powerful enough to wipe out this village and darken the sky on its own.

The darkness seemed to thicken at a particular spot in front of me as pitch black mist appeared and began to grow. I stood strong as a dark aura seemed to be reaching for me hungrily.

When the mist stopped growing a pair of red eyes opened, they seemed to pierce my soul on a whole different level. The mist died down, revealing a black skeleton with crimson red eyes, darkness radiated from it like the sun it was so intense.

The being looked to me with a look akin to pleasure, it raised a hand to me almost accusingly.

"**You are the one the shinigami speaks of?"** his voice was like someone was whispering a hundred times at once.

"I don't understand what your talking about. What is it you want?" I asked tensely.

"**You are the one. If you can defeat me, the other Shinigami's finding will be yours creature.**

"Other Shinigami, creature?" I asked once again.

"**Yes. There was a Shinigami, clad in black robes not of this world, he tried to kill me. I destroyed him, but his items remained, that is the light energy you feel here. If you can defeat me then I will give the things he carried with him."**

I was intrigued now, "What exactly did he have with him?"

"**He carried items of different varieties. A pouch that carried a dimension inside, a visor that I do not fully understand, a white costume that emits a large amount of light energy, a notebook, and a pair of concealed blades that can damage souls."**

"I will fight you and take the things of this Shinigami." I said now a little excited at the prospect of otherworldly objects.

"**Excellent."** Was his only reply before my vision went black as his dark aura attacked me.

Darkness consumed me, I was somewhere familiar. I was in the void again, darkness consumed my senses. My eyes felt numb, and then a small light appeared, it was small but growing.

Images were becoming apparent, all of them were sad parts of my life, and it crippled me on a deep mental level. I could feel the skeleton approach me, but there was nothing I could do.

_My parent's death…_

_no…_

My Reaitsu was becoming more hollow-like as the images flickered, my emotions were raging inside.

_The orphanages…_

_No…_

_My blood brother…_

_NO!_

My Reaitsu was nearly all hollow when I felt something inside me go ballistic a wave of pure Reaitsu snapped the images from my eyes. I found myself in the exact same spot I was before, except the skeleton was a few feet away from me.

The Reaitsu from earlier was burning bright white and it burned the skeletal creature as it shrieked and moved back from me.

The dark aura seemed to be rearing back from the wave of energy. My Reaitsu was calming down as I felt hope and happiness overwhelm my being, surprisingly it was coming from the skeleton.

The skeletal being smiled, if that was possible. **"I am Feras, the spirit of fear. This was a test of your willpower and you passed. You will have the items of the Shinigami that failed this test."** Feras said as the light energy I felt earlier vanished, and then appeared in front of me.

I was thoroughly confused right now. "So wait, you're a spirit of fear that tests people's willpower?" I received a nod. "O.k.… but why me? I mean wouldn't you go after Luffy considering his future?" I was still slightly shaken from the images.

"**No, I only test beings of other worlds. The humans here are linked to fate."**

"Wait others? Who else is here?" I asked, I was anxious to know.

"**Someone important to you, and many others, some of which you will face" **Feras said cryptically.

I was about to question him further, but suddenly my vision went black again. I dropped to my knees and grabbed my eyes, it didn't hurt, but it was damn annoying.

A few seconds later my vision began to return to me. I looked around and saw the area had reverted back to normal, as though Feras was never here. _Damnit! My first real lead on this anomaly crap and its gone!_

I stood up and surveyed my supposed reward.

True to his word there was a gold visor with black glass lined in the center. I remembered it as the spiritual visor Renji used to find Rukia. There was also a small worn pouch next to it, but what really caught my eye was the mark on the bag. _No way, this couldn't possibly be…_

It most definitely was, it was the mark of Fairy Tail, **THE** Fairy Tail! I knew there would be anomalies and all, but still a member of Fairy Tail in this world! If I found one I could learn so much!

I calmed myself and looked over the remaining things, there was a notebook labeled 'Romeo Conbolt's Adventure Journal!' I recognized the name. _Wait a minute, if a Shinigami has a Childs journal and a dimensional bag marked with a Fairy Tail insignia. Is it possible…?_

…_that this Shinigami killed Romeo?_

Romeo was the son of Macao, from the Fairy Tail world and specialized in unusual types of Rainbow Flame magic, he was about 8 or 9, if that kid was put into this world, its more then likely he was depressed and weak. A combination like that in this world could very well kill him.

I decided that I would most definitely be reading this later, but first to test this pouch thing. I looked over the pouch; I could feel it adjusting itself to my own Reaitsu, it was an odd sensation. I saw small printed words on the back.

_To Romeo_

_This is a dimensional bag I personally made for you; it has Runes that don't allow any living things in there for any reason what so ever. Also this bag adjusts to your powers, meaning the stronger you get, the more it can carry. I've already tested it and its safe, so don't worry about getting killed or something like that. To put something in, put the object close to it and will it in, the same goes for taking stuff out._

_Happy birthday from Levy_

_Huh, that's neat…_

I secured the small pouch to my waist, and then opened it. It kind of felt like a black hole, but I ignored it as I placed the notebook at its entrance. The notebook literally was sucked into it, it maid me jump for a moment, I then did the same with the visor.

I looked over the last three items; I immediately knew what they were. One was a set of clothing, a white robe with a red sash; it also had a pair of brown boots and a white undershirt. There was a large belt bearing a strange symbol on it, I thought about it for a moment. My eyes widened for what felt like the thousandth time today, _this is the Assassins Creed uniform!_

I was happy I finally had something else to wear other then my original clothing; I just have to fix it later with my Reaitsu. I took the pouch off my waist and placed it on the top of the clothing, I focused my will on the clothing going in, and with an unfamiliar sensation they did just that. _I will never get used to that._

I grabbed the last two items and looked over them; they were the concealed blades the assassins wore as gauntlets. They were older, but they still had a shine to it, the assassin's insignia was on the center of the blade mechanism. I remembered something. _I can't use these unless I cut off my middle finger, which I could probably regrow, but still, that shit will hurt. _I put away the concealed blades in my pouch, sad that I couldn't use them without hurting myself.

I stood up and prepared to leave, I summoned my blades back as I looked around, _should I go back to the ship or…_, my train of thought was cut off when I heard a strange dragging sound mixed with laughter and shrieks of fear.

I turned to the source of the noise…

**BAM!**

…only to get bashed in the face by a speeding cart carrying the dragon and my crew. My blades were thrown off into the distance from the impact. _Well shit…_

"Malaki-san, are you okay?!" I heard Apis scream in between the sound of my body being practically run over.

I couldn't answer obviously, I was holding on for dear life! If I let go to answer her, I'd get crushed by a one ton dragon!

I could feel my boots being burned across the ground so badly that my boots were starting to burn, that's when I felt a hands grab my shoulder. I looked up and was surprised to find Apis and Nami, gripping either shoulder and pull me up.

They held onto me even after they saved me as our psychopathic captain just laughed at what was happening, _I'm gonna kick his ass for not helping me._ Was my only thought as I gripped the two girls in return, not wanting to fall off and die. I didn't cream like the others, I was too focused on my body. I had n ass load of splinters on me and they hurt, a lot!

We rocketed back and forth for, with Luffy destroying every obstacle happily, it took about a minute before I could see our ship, _thank god!_

"I think we arrive safely..." Nami cried into my chest. It was… awkward for me

"Really?" Asked the long nosed in a fearful voice. "I wouldn't say that, considering the luck we've had today…" As if on cue we jerked to a sudden halt, throwing us like rag dolls, except Luffy who was sitting in the front.

**SPLASH!**

When I hit the water, I didn't have to deal with the sudden change in temperature, thanks to the whole hollow thing, but Nami and Apis tightened there grip on me as I sat up. I was really mad now, I was wet, beaten, and had a whole bunch of splinters, not that Nami and Apis's grip helped that that. The only reason I didn't cry in pain was because of my extreme self control.

I could feel Nami's friends on my arm, and it made me uncomfortable. Nami and Apis let go of me a moment after seeing the splinters they were inadvertently deepening.

"Oh my gosh! I'm sorry Malaki-Kun!" Apis practically shrieked into my ear, making me flinch

"Get prepared, were going!" came the cry of our rubber captain.

I stood up and Shunpo'd to the deck of the ship, and sent a strong pulse of Reaitsu, removing the water from me and thankfully most the splinters. I tried another pulse and it got rid of the rest of them; it sent widespread relief to my body.

I then Shunpo'd to the crows nest so I could relax after my annoying ordeal. I knew it would be short lived, but I was tired from the recent strain on my Reaitsu. Ever since I saw Feras, I lost a good half my Reaitsu stopping those images; I shuddered at the horrible memory. This was one of the curses of having photographic memory; you can't always control what you remember.

I looked at the rest of the crew and saw all the crew members except Zoro on the deck. Luffy reached out an arm towards what I assumed was Zoro;_ poor bastard gets the worst of Luffy's idiocy._ I shook my head in pity as Luffy's hand retracted with a cry of "Let's go!" and sure enough the green haired swordsman came rocketing back. I could hear him crying something but I couldn't make it out as I turned my head to what would be extremely painful scene.

**BAM!**

The swordsman crashed into the ships mast with enough force to vibrate the entire ship for a moment. I inwardly winced, _that's got to hurt._

"…ah, sorry." was the sheepish reply of the rubber captain.

I Zoro, who more or less looked like a large web of limbs, it probably hurt as bad as it looks. The swordsman breath was ragged for obvious reasons, but he managed to speak.

"One of these days, I am _definitely_ going to kill you." The battered Zoro hissed.

After a few moments the crew prepared the ship, and we left this accursed island. When we reached the barrier I remembered that we were about to get ambushed by the marines.

I Shunpo'd to the deck next to Zoro, and summoned my blades as the Going Merry's figurehead peaked out of the barrier followed by the rest of the ship. Passing the barrier is such a weird feeling, but I can't really describe it.

"Ooo! We're out, we're out!" guess who.

"That is such a weird feeling…" murmured Usopp.

We were headed full speed to Gunkan Island; the others seemed excited while I was tense as ever.

_I really need to relax sometimes, everything's so troublesome._

The crew was talking about the ships that are following us, but I pretty much ignored them. I was far more focused on what was ahead of us…

_Shit Monkeys!_

It was a freaking titanic ass ship; it had the figurehead of what looked like a lion. The ship itself looked like someone connected three ships into one, huge ass one. It was unnerving remembering what it was capable of.

Luffy, being the idiot he is, admired the ship that could potentially kill us.

"Awesome! So cool! It looks like a floating gargoyle!" The rubber idiot exclaimed.

Zoro and I just shook our heads at his antics, _it's unfixable._

I could see the ship in the distance raising three flags, but I had no idea what for…

…That is until I saw more then twenty ships appear from behind the titanic gargoyle.

_My luck is literally shit!_

The others gasped in both shock and fear, Zoro and Sanji seemed pretty tense, and Luffy was well…

…Luffy

The ships ahead, now formed in a semicircle were spreading chains out, forming a huge ship net.

"What are we going to do? We'll be captured!" Apis asked, panicking for obvious reasons.

I looked back to where she was and saw a smug Usopp; the face really didn't fit him.

"We'll board their ships, kick them off and cut the chains. It's the only way." The liar said in an unusual manner.

"Wow! Can you really do something like that Usopp?!" Apis said in astonishment.

His posture changed in seconds, as he pointed to the ships, "GO! Luffy! Zoro! Sanji!"

_Not like I'm here or anything, geez._

Apis just stared at him with a deadpanned expression, and murmured something I couldn't hear.

Zoro smirked and brandished his Wado, "Doesn't sound like a bad idea though."

"Are you serious? No matter how many lives you had…" Apis asked, but stopped when Nami placed a hand on her shoulder.

I decided to ignore the rest, and prepare to use a but load of kido.

The ships suddenly began firing on us; amazingly none had hid so far. _The wonders of anime_.

Now we were practically racing back and forth as not to get hit by a cannonball. Me, Zoro, and Sanji were just standing around, scowls adorning our faces. I was seriously annoyed, _this is taking to long, but it's not like I can just… wait… yes I can._

I facepalmed myself before I walked to the railings on the left side of the ship. I looked to the marine ships closest to the titan sized ship before I Shunpo'd towards it.

In mid Shunpo I could see the soldiers on the ships panicking, after all it's not everyday you see someone move across air. I decided to scare them a bit more, I stopped using Shunpo about halfway there, and used my Reaitsu to allow me to walk on air. I then begin to run towards there ship, blades raised to strike.

[Going Merry, General POV]

Luffy and the others, except Nami, who was steering the ship stood there not believing there eyes, there mage, the guy that's as cold as ice when he wants to was running on air towards a marine ship, that was firing at him. A single thought was passing through there heads.

_How many powers does he have?_

Luffy eyes were beaming stars at Malaki, "SO COOL! I wanna learn!" He exclaimed before he was hit upside the head by a certain long nosed liar.

"This is not the time to be admiring his abilities!" Usopp yelled, eyes white with annoyance.

Meanwhile with a certain mage…

Marines shrieked in fear as 'The Hollow Swordsman' cut down there men mercilessly, without so much as the bat of an eye. They were trying to fight back, but every time they tried he just disappeared. The man swung his Shinigami blade right across a marine's chest, effectively splitting him in two.

Now they were downright terrified, they now new how he had gained his name.

The monster continued to plow through there men with ease, like they weren't even there. The captain of the ship could only watch, to afraid to do anything as a pair of cold grey eyes suddenly locked onto him.

The captain was paralyzed with fear, never had he seen such cold eyes. They practically pierced him. He was about to call his men for help when he realized they were all dead limbs lying around, so much blood was on the deck that you could mistake it for paint.

He stared at the monster that had killed his entire crew.

The man wore bandages, as though hiding some hideous features. He carried two blades of seemingly opposite origins; one being a massive katana, and the other a small Jian, both blades were soaked in blood. The bottom half of his face was hidden under a black and white mask that was stained with the blood of hi crew, his friends.

But what unnerved him the most were his eyes.

They were a steely grey, cold, and calculating, his eyes were that of someone not his age. The despair in them was so great that it felt like it was trying to infect him. The marine eye the man with pity, no one should be so sad, but why did he care? This man had just killed his entire crew without mercy, even the ones that pleaded for there families. He should be hating him, cursing the man for what he's done. He found he just couldn't find it in him to hate him, why? He will never know.

The man raised his larger blade for the final blow, and the marine just closed his eyes, knowing a fight would be pointless, but the blow never came.

He opened his eyes hesitantly to find the man wasn't even there, the marine fell to his knees, tears flowing from his eyes.

He had just been spared.

[Marine Ship, Malaki POV]

I raised my Shinigami blade to kill this captain, who just stood there closing his eyes, _weak, but respectable._

Just when I was about to strike I could here the sound of a bullet and a scream of agony in the distance. I kept my blade raised and turned to see what was happening. My eyes widened considerably…

_That was Luffy's voice!_

I decided to spare the weakling in front of me in favor of returning to the ship. I disappeared from the captain's sight with the telltale blur of Shunpo as I made my way to the Going Merry.

When I got there I could immediately tell something was off.

There was no idiotic laughter, or snide complaints, it was… unnervingly quite.

I could see Zoro, Sanji, and the rest of the crew except Nami, who I guessed was still steering the ship, and Luffy, all huddled in a circle.

As I approached the group and was greeted with the sound of an agonized moan. My eyes widened as I uncharacteristically ran to the group.

I was too shocked to find some of the gang were crying, namely Apis and Usopp. I looked to see who was at the center and was shocked beyond belief…

…it was Luffy.

He was lying down as blood seeped from his chest, a bullet sat next to him. It looked exactly like a sniper shell from my world; Zoro was trying profusely to stop the bleeding.

"Come on! Come on! DON'T GIVE UP YOU BASTARD!" Sanji yelled a hateful scowl on his face.

Saying I was mad would be an understatement, the rage I was feeling, the hate, it wasn't at anyone but myself. _If I had been there I…_

My thoughts trailed off into a much darker place, I could feel the hollow side of me crying for blood, and I didn't resist it as a matter of fact I encouraged it. I feed the darker side my hate and anger until darkness was spreading across my vision.

The seemed to notice as they eyed me with fear. I looked at them as the darkness spread.

"Run." Was all I said as darkness spread across my vision.

[?, Malaki POV]

I groaned as I felt something kick my back.

I could feel grass underneath my body, and the air was cool. The kick came once more, eliciting a groan from me.

I opened my eyes, everything was blurry. I could make out some colors, there were mostly big globs of green and brown, but what caught my attention was a white figure towering above me.

"Yo…" The figures voice was distorted and unnatural. I could feel things becoming clearer now.

"…King."


	9. Chapter 9: Meeting New People…

Disclaimer: Don't own ONE PIECE

Meeting New People…

[Going Merry, General POV]

The crew of the Going Merry was not exactly in there prime at the moment, mainly because of three things.

One, there captain was lying on the ground, bleeding to death.

Two, they were surrounded by marine ships bent on killing or capturing them.

And three, the fact that there mage, there crewmate, and (though they wont admit it) friend was turning into some sort of monster.

They could only watch in horror as Malaki's eyes went pitch black and white substance spew forth from his mouth and eyes. The substance spread across his body, consuming his clothing at a terrifying rate. Before it was even finished consuming him they could see the transformation beginning.

It started at his face, a helmet like mask covering his entire head began to materialize. A row of spike sprouts along the line of the scalp resembling a crown of sorts. The horns were small and thick with narrow black triangles markings at the root pointing sown towards the eyes. A row of vicious teeth lined its mouth. Its eyes were unnatural, being opposite colors, the left white, and the right was black. They still had the same piercing effect on the crew though.

The rest of his body was completely covered in the white substance and was beginning to form. First it had four toed, clawed feet, with a small spike pointing down from the heel, and blades coming out of its knees and shoulders. Its arms were normal human shape, though the right hand up to the wrist was colored black. But was really off putting was its spine was jutting out, with blades for vertebrate. Its Hollow hole was located in the center of his abdomen. Then two fountains of the white substance shot forth from his back, taking the form of two draconic wings, the right black and the left white. The body altogether about 12 feet, three times the size of a human, its wings had a six foot span. Another fountain of substance grew into a plain, smooth white tail.

Basically, it was scary as hell… or at least it was the crew's opinion.

Zoro was now standing in front of Luffy defensively along with Sanji against this possible threat. While Usopp and Apis were cowering in fear as they were trying to prolong Luffy's life.

The Hollow spread its wings and stretched its limbs, in took a mighty inhale of breath that sounded like a hiss.

**RRRRRRRRROOOOOOOOOOOAAAAAAAA AAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRRR!**

The bestial bellow seemed to have a primal effect on everyone.

Zoro was completely lost at what to do. Luffy was dying, Malaki just turned into some rage monster capable of a roar that forced him to freeze in fear, and they had marines surrounding them. He looked into the eyes of the beast ahead, but was surprised by the lack of killing intent.

Sanji was in a similar condition. He was unable to move once he heard the monster he called a crewmate roar.

Usopp was just plain terrified.

Apis was in shock that the person that she felt an almost fatherly bond to had become a monster, and one that could easily kill them. It broke her on a fundamental level, but there was hope yet, because the Hollow seemed to be staring at Luffy. It wasn't a stare that contain a monstrous glint, but a more protective one.

The Hollow itself knew exactly what had to be done. Its instincts said these humans in front of him were his pack, the child his daughter oddly enough. One of the pack was injured; he identified him as the leader, meaning he had to save him now! It walked forward with its clawed feet slowly, seeing the tenseness of his pack members. The action only seemed to make them tenser; its only choice was an attempt at communication.

"Help… him" The Hollow hissed, shocking the crew. "Help… him" It tried once more.

The others were more then hesitant as it walked closer, but the way it spoke sent a feeling in them. Was it hope? They had no idea, but moved nonetheless.

The Hollow was grateful for the show of trust from its pack as it approached their leader. The human was bleeding from his chest; the Hollow lowered its head, careful not to harm the captain and sniffed his leaders wound. The Hollow could now tell exactly where his leaders assailant was, but first his leader.

The Hollow raised its head and put its right hand on his leaders wound. The black on his arm seemed to intertwine with Luffy's skin in the way roots did the ground as the Hollow focused its Reaitsu on his leader. Luffy's body was convulsing wildly as the Hollow forced his bodies healing rate to rapidly increase.

The others took it differently as Usopp and Apis vainly grabbed at its arms begging it to stop the Hollow from what he thought was killing his captain.

Zoro and Sanji just watched the event, preparing for the worst.

The glowing stopped as Luffy's body suddenly went still, the Hollow pulled his hand out of his captain, having finished and began to track there assailant.

Meanwhile the others were swarming Luffy as they had before. They were astonished to find the wound gone, replaced by a scar. Apis put an ear to his chest, hoping for a heart beat.

…Nothing, then…

_Thump… Thump_

_Thump, Thump_

She lifted her head, tears of joy freely fell a nodded to the rest, who instantly brightened up before looking back to the Hollow.

It was walking to the front of the ship sniffing the air, intent on killing his pack leader's assailant, when it felt something small wrap around its leg. It looked down to see the one he recognized as his daughter crying into its leg. Not wanting to worry the little one it slowly grabbed her by the shoulder and sent a pulse of Reaitsu to her. Her eyes widened in shock for a moment, before slowly returning to normal. She looked up to it with a strong sense of understanding before letting go of him and heading to Ryuji. With that dealt with the said Hollow continued its hunt, when it heard a ringing sound in the distance.

It looked to the source, and its eyes widened when it saw a ship with a massive barrel at its center. It didn't know what it was, but it knew it was bad. So it followed its instincts and raised its index and middle finger. Black and white energy swirled into existence the very moment a massive cannonball was launched from the barrel.

The others were on the edge of having a heart attack. This was just too much damn stress.

The Hollow had finished charging its attack, as it took the form of a small black ball covered with a thin sheen of white flames. Its instincts told it exactly what it was…

_Cero…_

The basketball sized orb suddenly burst forward in massive proportions, darkening the skies nearby. The massive beam slammed right into the massive cannonball.

**BBBBBBBAAAAAAAMMMMMMM!**

The collision between the two was massive, sending a shockwave of wind knocking most off there feet. The Cero was starting to overcome and melt its way through the cannonball, causing globs of iron to drop into the ocean.

When the beam died down the cannonball was no more, having been completely annihilated or rather melted down.

To say the least everyone was shocked.

Nelson himself was about to go into cardiac arrest from the display of monstrous power.

The Hollow was now sure that whatever this thing was needed to be destroyed and coincidentally the sent were in the same direction. It looked to the back of the ship having senses another being capable of flight and was met with an angering sight.

Saw a large bird like dragon was taken away by a small rowboat. I knew better that to engage them from the distance. His daughter's life would be in jeopardy when it saw that they held her hostage.

The older dragon raised its wings and roared at the sky, sending an ear shattering wave, where it felt the familiarity of the call, as though the heavens would return it. One of which the Hollow returned in kind, it felt the skies calling it

It was watching the dragon in understanding when the dragon started to flap its wings and began to fly. The Hollow decided now was the best time to join this dragon as it spread its own wings in a stretching motion before it began to flap as well.

The Hollow dawned a sinister grin of its own as it lifted off into the air, the dragon only moments ahead.

The aforementioned dragon was being bombarded with cannon shells, forcing it to slowly fall towards the ocean tiring itself.

The Hollow ignored it; it had more important things to do then save an already dying dragon.

The Hollow increased it pace as it followed the scent of the bullet since it was lessening due to wind. It was now only meters away from the ships deck when multiple marines got together and collectively fired at the beast.

**BAM!**

Much to there ire the bullets proved useless as the shell flattened and fell off of the bone white armored skin, but fired nonetheless, hoping they got lucky.

**BOOM!**

There hopes were shot down as the Hollow slammed into the deck, piercing two men with its feet as they clashed with the ground. The Hollow looked at them with hungry eyes; the reaction was immediate silence…

"AAAAHHHH! A monster, run for your lives!" A marine cried, snapping the others out of there trance, they all ran in terror of the draconic beast.

The Hollow pulled its blood soaked feet loose from the pair marines it impaled on its way down, and grab both by the waist. It opened its jaw to the max and stuck one halfway into its mouth…

**CRACK! CRUNCH! CRACK!**

…and with an audible crunch began eating the marines in its hands.

The already terrified marines were practically pissing themselves, all except one that is, but he didn't look like a marine ion the slightest.

A man was watching with interest and slightly deranged glee._WOW! He's really hungry, even more then me!_ Thought the man as he stared at the Berretta Sniper in his hands. This man wore a full red and black costume, and was carrying two Katana swords on his back. He also had a belt with several pouches and two guns attached to it. As people ran past him in terror of the Hollowfied mage he continued his train of thought. _Maybe we can be friends and have an eat off!_

One of the marines stopped in front of the spandex wearing psycho. "Weren't you paid to help us?! Kill the Demon! Deadpool!" He begged.

Deadpool looked down and thought, _Demon?_And looked back with an eyebrow raised. **"Demon? You sure?"** He said as he aimed his rifle and looked at the Hollow, and inspected the monster.

**"I see razor sharp claws, scales, wings, lizard tongue, pure black and white eyes, messed up spine, and a killer tail. I don't know much about demons but I guess your right then."** He finished, and with a sigh began walking towards the 'demon'.

The Hollow was already finished with its victim when it saw a red and black creature approach it, it's cross colored eyes widened, though you wouldn't see it. This creature was the source of the scent it had been tracking!

It brandished its claws and hissed as Deadpool excitedly walked up to him. **"Hey bug guy! Do you wanna be my friend?"** He was answered with and angered swing of it claws, which he smoothly dodged. **"That's a no then? Well I guess we can still PLAY!"** HE finished with a cry as he fired the sniper at the creatures stomach.

Deadpool was surprised that instead of blood, he was greeted with a set of claws digging into his shoulder. He grunted in pain and dropped the rifle, unable to carry it, and jumped backwards. His healing abilities were kicking in as he drew he famous blades.

"**You're a strong one! Now I'll go all out! You get to fight against The Merc with a mouth a.k.a Wade Wilson!"** The over enthusiastic merc cried as he leapt forward, blades posed to strike.

The Hollow swung its mighty blood covered claws at Deadpool, who quickly slid below the angered claws and slashed the blade into the tender side of its legs, eliciting a cry of pain from the Hollow as it fell to its knees. Deadpool stood up behind it smiling at his work. The smile was wiped from his face when he saw a sudden burst of white ooze cover the ones, when it was finished it looked as though he weren't even attacked.

The merc was cursing his luck right now, _damn, this fight might be harder then I thought… well I'll just go all out now!_. Deadpool smiled under his mask as the Hollow stood up and angrily roared at Deadpool.

Deadpool wasted no time as he charged at the Hollow he was intent on killing. The Hollow felt an instinctual pull in his throat, it was a burning sensation, it roared with all his might.

Deadpool pulled a grenade from his punch and prepared his blades, he prepared to jump on the Hollows back as it roared, but was surprised when the Hollow spewed flames from its mouth. The flames were red hot; Deadpool tried to avoid it, but was already in mid-jump. The flames met his into his legs; the flames ate away at his legs almost hungrily. He clenched his teeth to hold back his cry of pain as he continued his movement and landed on the Hollows back, singing the flames out while mid flip.

The Hollow roared once again, much to the mercenary's glee. Deadpool pulls the pin on his grenade and slams it into its mouth, effectively shutting it up. The Hollow tried to grab the thing, but it was too late.

**BAM!**

The explosion turned its mouth into a small hellfire in moments; the shockwave reverberated through its body, damaging the Hollow internally and causing it to fall to a knee. Its rapid healing abilities were kicking in, and it could feel the white substance course through its body.

Meanwhile Deadpool was staring at the cloud of smoke, hoping he got lucky and it was dead, but he knew his luck was crap so he prepared for another attack. He was surprised by that flame attack, but thanks to his own abilities he quickly recovered.

Deadpool tensed when he saw pair if miss matched eyes glaring at him through the smoke. He tensed in preparation when he saw another source of light coming from just below his eyes. Deadpool's eyes widened when the smoke settled, the Hollow was pointing it arm in his direction, and at the tip of his fingers was a small ball of black and white energy. He had seen the attack earlier so he used his belt to flicker out of existence and into midair.

The Cero the Hollow had been charging fired, it noticed Deadpool flicker away as the attack roared into the deck and rammed into another ship, completely annihilating it. A large amount of the deck was missing, and water flooded into the quickly sinking ship. The splinters of the attack were the size of an average sword and were launched at extremely high speeds, damaging the other parts of the ship and impaling several marines unlucky enough to be near the creature.

Deadpool flickered back down behind the Hollow, and without hesitation charged at the monster. He leaped onto its back and stabbed the Hollow several times at its back, using its jutted spin as a grip. He felt something slither around his waist before he found himself slam head first into the deck, nearly snapping his neck with the sheer force.

The Hollow took the opportunity to slam its clawed fist into Deadpool's waist, eliciting a cry of pain from Deadpool, along with the sound of crack electronics. Deadpool quickly stabbed both blades into the Hollow thigh and left them there, the sudden pain caused the Hollow to cry in pain.

Deadpool used the opportunity to jump up, **"Damn! I can't beat this thing!"** He exclaimed as his wounds healed, he looked at the Hollow pull the blades from its legs and snap them like twigs, **"Screw this crap! Time to runaway- I mean, time for a tactical retreat!"**

He turned tail and ran towards the edge of the deck, but the Hollow would not let him escape so easily. It raised an arm at the human and charged over half of its Reaitsu into a single Cero; it was now roughly triple the size of a basketball now.

Deadpool turned around, and his eyes widened as he saw the saw of the attack compared to the other one, he reached a hand down to his belt, but was literally shocked by it. He looked down and saw a completely smashed belt; he remembered when the Hollow slammed its foot on its waist. _Damn, that bastard must have broken it!_ Today was really not his day!

He looked at the attack, and realized that he couldn't avoid this attack without his belt. The Cero launched forward, it was so large that it reached up into the sky and pushed the clouds over and sent tidal waves in the sea.

_Well, this will be the ultimate test of my healing… right?_ Were the last thoughts of Deadpool, though he knew there was no way of surviving this. With his final thoughts darkness claimed him as he faded from existence.

The Hollow was visibly shaking from the over exertion of its Reaitsu on that last attack. It was still just a normal Hollow so it was expected when it used powers above its own level.

It spread its wings slowly as it prepared to leave the sunken ship, when it realized the entire ocean was freaking shaking! It lifted off from the nearly sunken ship warily, hoping not to drop out of the sky from exhaustion, and made its way to its pack.

It flew with almost everything it had to get back, but it was starting to lose altitude. Just before it hit the water, it could see something in the distance. It was a huge mass of green, and it was closing in on the Marines.

The Hollow was about to hit the water, it felt a pair of massive claws grab its back. It turned to see a large feathered dragon carrying it towards the ship. It dropped the Hollow onto the deck and joined its brothers in the rampage.

The others watched as the Hollow crashed into the deck, temporarily forgetting there situation. They didn't really know what to do, all things considered they shouldn't.

…

…

It just stood there and stared at the crew before its right hand jumped to its mask, and began to pull. The Hollow shrieked in pain as black and white Reaitsu started surrounding it.

With a sudden burst of Reaitsu the hand fell to its side, and its body was still. Its eyes no longer carried it ominous color.

**Crack-Crack**

Cracks spread across its body like ice as it fell forward, shattering piece by piece. The pieces that fell faded away, and in mid fall its body was all but gone revealing a fully clothed unconscious Malaki.

The crewmembers quickly gathered around there incapacitated mage, all thinking the same thing, even Luffy.

_Just what are you?_

[?, Malaki POV]

_Recap-_

_I groaned as I felt something kick my back._

_I could feel grass underneath my body, and the air was cool. The kick came once more, eliciting a groan from me._

_I opened my eyes, everything was blurry. I could make out some colors, there were mostly big globs of green and brown, but what caught my attention was a white figure towering above me._

"_Yo…" The figures voice was distorted and unnatural. I could feel things becoming clearer now._

"…_King."_

_Now to continue…_

My body tensed at the remark, having only heard it from one person before. I sat up as my vision cleared.

I tensed when I felt a smooth gloved hand lightly grabbed my shoulder, I looked up and was shocked at what I saw.

A man in his late twenties staring down at me with a lazy posture. He had pure gray eyes, slit black pupils, and a grin filled with sharpened teeth. Nearly every feature on his body was paper white. From the long hair that reached his shoulders to his sharpened claws. He wore a (oh so surprisingly) white kimono with a dark purple sash holding it together.

I immediately Shunpo'd away from the man, or rather spirit in this case.

"Which one are you?" I asked, tensed for a less then pleasant confrontation.

The spiritual entity frowned at my words, and I swore I saw hurt flicker across his eyes, but it was quickly replaced with a torturous gleam. "Well King here I thought you were smart, I mean, who else calls you **King**? I'm the Hollow side obviously."

I glared at the 'Hollow'; he was pushing all the wrong buttons.

He merely smirked back at me, "Aww, the little Kingy hurt?" My glare was starting to burn him; he put his hands up in surrender, "Geez, just a joke Kingy."

A thought struck my head, "Don't you want to fight me for control?"

His smirk fell a little, "No, not right now. You're still not at your strongest, so I got to wait awhile." He sounded somewhat depressed.

"So you don't want my body because I'm still weak?"

"Of course! I'm a Hollow, we only want the strong!" He paused for a moment, "Plus we got some things to talk about."

I raised an eyebrow, "And what might that be?"

"You remember how you got here right?" I shook my head, "Well basically your body Hollowfied while your body was in extreme mental stress. Meaning right now, your body is out there and running on our instincts."

"Is it going to kill the crew?"

He shrugged, "From what I can tell, its instincts are seeing your crew as a pack for whatever reason. Okay now where was I… aahh right! When your bodies Hollowfied like that you took the first step in your evolution. Your Hollows current state is just a normal hollow with Shinigami powers, but there have been a few interesting twists with both."

"You see because of the fact that you still have a human body, my Hollow Reaitsu is beginning to merge with your, still living body. Now the problem with that is if we merge to quickly, your body will be torn apart from the stress. My solution to this problem is that we merge in two phases."

"The first phase will consist of merging with your bone structure and your muscular system. Your bone structure will be made up of the same Hollow substance that makes up a Hollows mask, meaning breaking bones will be a lot harder then before. Your muscular system is currently made up of white muscles. White muscles are muscles that focus purely on flexibility instead of strength. Red muscles are the opposite, focusing on strength, but lacking that flexibility. I'm going to replace them Pink muscle. Pink muscle is a combination of the two, so you'll have both strength and flexibility. I advise that you should train physically without Reaitsu for the best outcome."

"Phase two doesn't matter right now so I'll tell you later. Any questions?" The Hollow said, somehow conjuring glasses.

"I thought Inner Hollows were insane?" I asked, shell shocked by his intelligent explanation.

He smirked… again, "Well King, that's wrong. You're Inner Hollow is what you would've been like if you became a Hollow."

"Okay, is there anything else I should know?" I asked

His smirk fell into a frown of displeasure. "King have you ever bothered to look around you?"

I almost slapped myself; I mean how do you forget to check out your inner world?

I looked and the place that is my minds representation and noticed something immediately.

Everything was dead.

Well everything but the small area around me. There was a small Sakura tree with about twenty feet of grass surrounding it.

There were trees and plants and grass here, but it was all withered and dying.

It made for a really depressing scene.

The area surrounding the Dead lands, as I dubbed them, was surrounded by a massive blizzard, making it impossible to see anything outside of it.

If this represents me, then I am incredibly depressed.

"That's right King, everything in her is dead, and it's unbearably cold at night. The only living plants here are that damn Sakura tree, and I hate it. King this place represents your emotional status. The Sakura tree represents you're compassion for someone, and all this dead crap means you're emotionally dead. The damn blizzard represents your coldness towards others."

"You want me to fix it?"

His arms shot up. "HELL YEAH! Get a girlfriend, have sex, get some friends! It doesn't matter as long as this place gains some more life damnit!" He exclaimed.

I nodded; it would piss me off to. "So… do you have a name?" I asked, trying to change the subject.

It worked, because his smirk was back full blast. "_**I**__**gualda**_ (Equality) King!"

I scratched the back of my head uncomfortably, "You know instead of King, you can always cal me partner." I said off-handedly.

He seemed absolutely giddy with excitement. "Really?! I thought you would hate cause I'm a Hollow!"

I smiled one of rarest sights, "No point in fighting myself now is there?"

His grin was splitting his face now, "Ok…partner."

"So is there anything else important I need to know?" I asked.

"Umm… yeah, because of the weirdness of your body, my power has mixed into your Shinigami powers. That means that instead of a **resurrección**, you have a different Shikai with my powers tied into it. You're other Hollow powers like Cero and Bala are gonna be a lot harder for you to learn because of this, the same can be said for any Kido above #20."

"Ok thanks for all this, but how do I get out of here?"

"You can leave anytime Ki- I mean partner, but first we have to start phase one remember?"

I felt like an idiot, "Of course, I was just curious."

"Sure partner sure. Now just stand still for a minute."

I did as he asked, but I shivered a little when I felt something touch my legs. I looked down and saw pitch black chains with glowing red veins running across it. They advanced until they were intertwined with every part of my body. They suddenly tightened, forcing me to my knees. I looked up and saw Igualda smiling like the maniac he is.

"King this is gonna hurt… a lot." He spoke in a not so soothing tone.

The red veins on the chains started glowing, and it began.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHH HHHHHHHHHH!"

It was not a steady build up, the moment Igualda's Reaitsu flooded the body and the area around him as multiple seals appeared on his body sent him into absolute agony ripped through Malaki. It felt like every cell in his body was being torn to shreds, like being melted in a pool of acid, or having his nerve endings destroyed with a branding iron. Igualda had told him that it would hurt, and he knew that it would, but being told something and finally feeling it. Those are two completely different things.

He was in a world of pain

[Going Merry, General POV, and hours of torture later]

The first thing Malaki noticed when he woke up was the lack of pain. It wasn't just a lack of pain but the in general feeling that he felt better than he ever had at any previous point in his life. There was no ache, no molten, dripping lava or anything, he felt, for lack of a better word, great.

It was than he began to notice the little things. Details like the fact that his senses were through the roof; he could feel everything going on around him, from the softness of the silken sheets that lay under his fingertips, to the soft, silky, skin-like texture of the pillows his head was resting on and the fingers currently running through his hair, lightly messaging his scalp. Then there was his -

Wait. What?

He pushed the covers over and walked to the nearest mirror.

Malaki had grown nearly a foot, putting him from his original five foot one to six foot one. His muscles, while still holding their thin build, were much broader than before to match his new height. He looked older as well; at least six years or so. He still looked generally the same, but there were some major differences. For one, his hair had grown longer. Another major change were his eyes, they were still steel-grey though they now held a slight onyx-black added to their tone, his pupils were slitted, and to top it off there was a ring of black around his iris. It was an odd change but Malaki liked it.

Finally, his biggest change and the one that shocked him the most. The first was the fact that his hair now had white streaks added to its oil black color. They varied in thickness but there were several that ran down the length of his hair. But that was small in comparison to the set of razor sharp Hollow-like teeth in his mouth, it wasn't something he was expecting. The last noticeable change was his tongue, it was at least 8 inches long, and was forked at its end.

In short he looked like a lizard man.

…

Sorry that the chapter was a bit on the short end, but I needed to tie the loose ends for the next chapter.


	10. Chapter 10: Strength and Memories

Disclaimer: Don't own ONE PIECE

**This should be enough for anyone lacking knowledge of the bleach world for my future references.**

**Shinigami** – Death God, Soul Reaper

**Reaitsu** – Spiritual energy. Not to be confused with Mana or Life force.

**Zanpakuto** – The sword every Shinigami uses. It has a spirit that communicates with its user, and when evolved can use specialized attacks.

**Kido** – Shinigami magical arts, divided into Bakudo (restraining magic), Hado (destruction magic), and general Healing Kido. Each Kido, with the exception of Healing, is known by what type of Kido it is, followed by a number which determines its difficulty, and then its name. The higher the number it is, the more difficult it is. They all have a different incantation in order to cast. When someone is extremely skilled at a particular Kido, the incantation is unnecessary, but using it increases the Kido's power.

**Shikai** – "First Release"; Every Zanpakuto has an initial release, Shikai, which is gained through a Shinigami learning the Zanpakuto's name, and release phrase. For instance, Kuchiki Rukia's Shikai release is "Dance, Sode no Shiraiyuki!" In Shikai form, many Zanpakuto's change form, and gain special abilities. Rukia's Shikai gives her "dances" which release ice-type attacks.

**Bankai** – "Great Release"; Every Zanpakuto has a second release, Bankai. Bankai is achieved in stages. The first stage is manifestation of the Zanpakuto spirit in the physical world. The second stage is passing the spirit's test. It is said that while Shikai involves working with the spirit, Bankai means dominion over the spirit, and gaining its full power. Often, a Shinigami's outfit will change to symbolize this in Bankai mode. For instance, when Kurosaki Ichigo uses Bankai, his Shinigami robes transform into Zangetsu's clothes. Also, Bankai is said to be easily ten times more powerful than Shikai.

**Hollow – **A dead soul that has degenerated, turning into a monster. In the process, it loses its heart, and instead has a hole somewhere on its body, typically its chest, though it is known to have appeared elsewhere. It also has a mask, used to disguise itself from the world. The mask is a Hollow's weak point.

**Menos – **Based in Spanish, meaning "Minus" – a reference to souls that have not degenerated, known as "Plus" souls – After a Hollow has eaten enough souls, it undergoes a transformation into a Menos. There are three different classes. Gillian is the weakest, but one is as tall as a skyscraper. Most Gillian have no sense of individuality. Gillian tend to eat each other. Once a Gillian that has retained its individuality has eaten enough of its own kind, it evolves into an Adjuchas. Once there, the Adjuchas must continue to eat other Hollows in order to maintain its form, else risk becoming a Gillian once more and never returning to Adjuchas level. After eating enough, an Adjuchas may evolve into the final class, a Vasto Lorde, the most powerful form of Hollow without undergoing the process of becoming an Arrancar. 10 Vasto Lorde working together are said to be able to destroy all of Soul Society, though thankfully they are rather reclusive.

**Arrancar – **Based in Spanish, meaning "To Tear"; A specialized form of Hollow that has taken off its mask and gained Shinigami-like powers. They too have a Zanpakuto, which seals away the majority of their Hollow powers. In the process, the Arrancar then takes a human form.

**Resurreccion – **Based in Spanish, meaning "Resurrection"; the process by which an Arrancar activates its Zanpakuto, similarly to Shikai. In Resurreccion, the Arrancar releases its power and regains the abilities he or she had as a normal Hollow.

**Hueco Mundo – **Based in Spanish, meaning "Empty/Hollow World"; the alternate world that Hollows live in. Fitting, as it is mostly composed of sand and Hollows.

**Vizard – **A Shinigami who has acquired Hollow-like powers. These powers are activated by putting the mask of their Hollow self on. In their mindscape, where the manifestation of a Shinigami's Zanpakuto is, a Vizard has an Inner Hollow, which takes on the appearance of the Vizard, with the colors reversed and in black and white. The mask itself is weak and easily destroyed; despite the enormous power it gives the user. When it is destroyed, the Vizard is greatly weakened and must resort to Shinigami powers until capable of re-summoning the mask.

**Hado 4: Byakurai** - Pale Lightning. It shoots a lightning bolt from the index and middle fingers.

**Pesquisa** - Arrancar ability. It acts as a sonar, finding and assessing Reaitsu.

**Bakudo 1: Sai **_**(Restrain)**__ –_ the very first Bakudo. This locks a person's arms behind their back, elbows bent so the hands are held near the top of the spine. It looks rather painful, but is extremely easy to break by any Shinigami with even average strength. Its only practical purposes appear to lie in distractions, binding humans who are getting in the way of Shinigami duties, and for introductions to Bakudo for Shinigami.

**Double Incantation**: By mixing the incantations of two different Kido, a Kido user can utilize both Kido one after another at full power. This is especially useful for higher-level spells. It's also useful in confusing people in what Kido you're using. This ability is first demonstrated by Rukia, combining Bakudo 61: Rikujokoro (Six bars prison of light) and Hado 63: Soren Soukatsui (Twin Lotus Blue Fire Crashdown).

**Bakudo 4: Hainawa** **(Crawling Rope)** - A very low level Bakudo, but highly effective. This technique binds both arms to their sides via an energy rope until the Bakudo is broken.

"Normal speech"

'_Inner speech/thoughts'_

"_Kido/Zanpakuto attacks"_

"_Hollow speech_"

Memories and Strength!

[Going Merry, General POV]

Malaki was doing the first thing that came to mind…

…Marveling his new features

He liked his hair more than his other features. If it had grown out in spikes like the rest of his hair he would have cut it since it wouldn't fit under his cap. The way his hair was now was perfect. His hair was spiked like before, but once it crossed his hairline it was smooth as silk, and the faded white at the end only added to its unique style.

"I look… different." He said confusedly. His tongue felt strange, almost like it would pop out of his mouth the next time he spoke.

"_I see you like our knew look."_

Malaki jerked back in surprise, "Who?!"

"_Woops, my bad partner. Forgot to tell you we can speak to each other now"_ Igualda said.

Malaki sighed, "Great, now I have to deal with you all the time."

"_Awww, I'm hurt partner, but don't worry about it."_

He shrugged his shoulders, "Well… I got to get dressssed and sssee what I've missssed."

"_Ummm… partner, you've been out for a while, so we might be further then you think."_

"Thanksss for that."

He could feel the Hollows smirk, _"No problem partner."_

"Um… how do I stop this hissssing?" He asked, it was getting annoying.

Igualda gave the mental equivalent of a face fault, _"Umm… you should be able to control your tongues length, so just focus on retracting it."_ He said.

Malaki close his eyes and did as he was told. He felt a stinging sensation in the back of his throat. He opened his eyes, time to test it out.

"Superior snipers snipe Siberians."

"_Partner…the hell does that mean?"_ Igualda asked.

"Nothing, just testing my tongue." Malaki thought for a moment, "Now, when can I expect the next phase of my transformation?" He asked.

"_Not for a while, your body still needs to adjust to the changes already made, so you should probably just focus on your physical strength, extending your senses, things like that without Reaitsu to speed up the process."_ Igualda said.

Malaki was still unsettled by the idea of an extremely intelligent Inner Hollow, but was always open to new ideas.

Could you really blame him?

Most Hollows are violent and near insane, but they all harbored a dislike for anything outside their own race, and even then they _ate_ each other.

Malaki shook off the train of thought, it wasn't going to help.

He ran a hand to his, now long, smooth hair, a welcomed change. It wasn't all spiky and annoying like before, but it made managing his shoulder length hair that much easier!

He looked around the room, seeing no one he sighed, '_What am I missing?_'

"_You might want to get dressed partner."_ Malaki could feel his hollow cackling.

Malaki's eyes widened, he looked down and blushed a bit.

No wonder it was so drafty.

He looked at the bed he had slept in only minutes ago and noticed all his clothing was folded, and sitting at the edge of the bed.

He quickly wrapped the bandages around him and put on the rest of his clothing except his pant legs and boots.

He looked at his pant legs or whatever you would call them. '_Should I wear them? They will do nothing but hinder my speed._' He asked himself. How had he not noticed this flaw before?

His hollow agreed,_ "Yeah, then there's the fact that you're a foot taller now, they probably won't reach your knees."_

Malaki nodded at the logic, it was nice to have another sane mind to speak with that wasn't obsessed with swords or food.

He left the pant legs alone and put on his combat boots; he then picked up his necklaces and placed them around his neck. He winced, after all, he did just have his DNA rewritten, and it hurt like hell.

He walked to the door and grabbed the handle when he suddenly felt the ship shake harder than usual. He balanced himself with relative ease.

"_What was that?' _He thought, his Hollow was thinking the same thing.

**BWAAA!**

The shaking increased dramatically, forcing Malaki to grab the door handle for dear life.

"_HOLY FUCKING SHIT!"_

After a few seconds of being twirled like a rag doll it finally stopped shaking, leaving a dizzy Malaki in shambles.

'_What…the…fuck'._

"_Get outside and see what that stupid ass crew of yours did!" _Igualda snarled. He may not be outside, but he can feel everything Malaki can damn it!

Malaki nodded before attempting to get up, which result in his world spinning more. After six, incredibly sad tries, he stood up, albeit reluctantly and opened the door. His nose was immediately assaulted with the smell of acid.

"What do you think?" he head someone say.

He turned to see Zoro and the crew staring at the unusually green water. Malaki noted his captain's absence.

"'What do I think', he says." Sanji snapped. Zoro didn't even notice; he was too baffled already. "We clearly just got swallowed by a whale."

"Is this a dream…?" Usopp whispered, too stunned by the inexplicable sky and small island floating in front of them.

"Yeah. Probably a dream." Zoro answered.

"I'd go with that to."

"So, the house on that island…?" Nami asked.

"An illusion." The sea began to rise and part, as a massive squid rose from the depths.

"Ah… and this?" there was a moment's pause, before Nami and Usopp screamed in unison. "A GIANT SQUID!" the fighters tensed, ready to strike…

Before the house on the door was flung open, and three harpoons shot out at a dazzling speed, punching holes in the squid. With nary a sound, it fell back dead. Sanji smirked. "Looks like someone's home."

"Where are we?" Malaki asked, right behind Sanji.

"HOLY SHIT!" Sanji yelled. The rest of the crew practically flew into the air, except Zoro strangely enough.

"GAH!" Nami screeched, she turned to Malaki, "Malaki-kun don't do that."

Malaki's eyebrow twitched, '_there it is again…'_

Igualda was just laughing his ass off, his bad mood completely forgotten.

Nami along with the others stared at Malaki, taking in his new appearance.

Usopp had stars in his eyes, "Awesome! You look like a lizard man!

Yeah, what happened to you? Nami asked.

I stared at them for a moment, "I don't really know, what happened when I passed out?" He lied, of course he knew, but they didn't need to.

The others tensed at the memory, it had been pretty traumatic.

An awkward silence enveloped the group until Nami spoke up. "After Luffy was shot you told us to run. Then…then you started turning into a giant lizard monster, but you helped us instead of attacking us. You healed Luffy somehow and wiped out a marine ship with a laser." She said, and his eyes widened. If he used a laser then it was…

Cero.

A Hollows trademark attack.

I looked at Zoro, "Where are we?"

Zoro turned to Malaki, "I think were in a giant ass whale."

Malaki just stared at him for a moment, _damn how long was I out…_

'_What happened? You should know more than them right? '_

"_Well king, you turned into a Hollow, saved your captain's life, fired a Cero, and killed Deadpool."_ Igualda said

Malaki sweatdropped, _'You're pretty blunt aren't you?'_

"_Don't see why I shouldn't be." _

"Hey, you in there?" Nami said, pulling him back to reality.

"Yes." He replied in his usual blank tone.

"Hey! What are you brats doing here!?" A gruff voice shouted.

I turned to the left and saw a silhouette of a man inside the house. He was pulling the ropes of the harpoons back, taking the squid closer to the house. The man stepped out and showed us his appearance. He was a massively built man with a barrel chest and two thick arms. He had scars on his arms, more than me, and stitches as well. He wore a pink shirt and shorts, and had some weird grass necklace. Strangely enough he had a flower on his head? He was bald with a white beard and an abnormally large lower lip.

_Where do they come up with these proportions?_

If looks could kill the crew would be dead from his stare. He just sat down on a lawn chair, pulled out a newspaper, and ignored us.

_Where did the newspaper come from?_

"YOU GONNA SAY ANYTHIIIIIIING?" Sanji shouted in anger and annoyance.

He continued to read his paper for a second before he turned to look at us.

"Hey! You wanna fight? We'll fight! We got cannons back here you bastard!" Usopp tried to intimidate him, but he was all the way inside the galley of the ship with the door open. The old man shot another intense glare at us for about a minute.

"You try it and someone's gonna die." He said to us.

"Yeah? And who's that?" Sanji said back to him as sweat ran down his face.

The old man instantly replied, "Me of course."

Malaki sighed. These people were nothing but a bunch of children.

", do you have any idea where the exit is?" Malaki asked politely. He may be cold, but he did have manners, more specifically to his elders. That and the fact that he knew this mans history, he deserved respect and nothing less.

The man looked at me strangely before a smile spread across his face, "Finally! Someone with some manners!"

Sanji grit his teeth and glared at both the old man and Malaki.

It looked like he was cross-eyed.

"What your name boy?" The old man asked.

"Malaki." Was his emotionless simple reply.

"Anyone else?" Crocus asked.

"Alright, fair enough," Zoro replied, "My name is—"

Zoro was cut off when the old man introduced himself, "My name is Crocus. I'm the Lighthouse Keeper of the Twin Capes. I'm seventy-one years old, and a Gemini."

"I'M GONNA KILL HIM RIGHT HERE!" Zoro shouted.

Malaki took his mask off and stared at the old man, "…"

The old man stared back, "…"

"…" Malaki kept staring.

"…" The old man stared back.

Malaki and Crocus didn't move a muscle; both stared at each other while the rest of the Straw Hats stared in confusion.

"…" Crocus' eye started twitching.

"ARE YOU GONNA SAY ANYTHING!" He yelled.

"Can you help us leave Crocus-san?" He asked, the others sweatdropped.

"…" Crocus stared at Malaki.

"…" Malaki stared back.

"…" The other Straw Hats sweat-dropped.

"Fine," Crocus agreed.

"Where are we?" Malaki asked. "I was… incapacitated an am confused as to where we are."

"You want to know where you are?" Crocus repeated. "I'd think it's fairly obvious since you were _eaten_. Now you're at my one-man resort."

"Wait, so you mean we really were eaten?" Usopp asked. "Since when does a whale's stomach have clouds in it?"

"What's gonna happen to us?" questioned Nami. "I don't wanna be digested!"

"…" Crocus glared at her.

"STOP DOING THAT!" Nami yelled.

"What's wrong? Never heard of a running gag?" questioned the old man.

"THAT WAS A GAG?" four of the Straw Hats shouted.

"The exit is over there," Crocus answered as he pointed to a large metal double door off in a distance.

"Okay, even if I believed a whale's stomach could have a door," said Nami, "There's nothing there but sky."

"Hold on, those seagulls aren't moving!" Usopp realized as he spotted a still bird up in the air. "THEY'RE PAINTED ON! IT'S A GIANT MURAL INSIDE A WHALE'S STOMACH!"

"It's a hobby of mine," Crocus explained.

"YOU'RE NOT MAKING ANY SENSE YOU CRAZY OLD FOOL!" Usopp yelled.

"Forget him," Zoro advised. "There's the exit, let's get out of here."

The entire… stomach… suddenly started lurching. "WHAT THE HECK WAS THAT?" Sanji shouted as the Going Merry and Crocus' Island bounced up and down in the waves.

"It's begun," Crocus said to himself.

"LOOK!" Nami suddenly shouted as she pointed to the Crocus's island which appeared to have a metal bottom. "That's not an island! It's some kind of ship!"

"Then this isn't water!" Usopp realized. "This a sea of gastric acid!"

"And our wooden ship won't fare too well if we stay here," said Sanji.

Crocus-san, what is going on?" Malaki asked.

"The whale is very angry," Crocus answered, "These aftershocks are a result of him hitting his head against the Red Line."

"Laboon was left here by the Rumbar Pirates after they entered the Grand Line." Malaki said.

Crocus whipped his head in Malaki's direction, eyes narrowed in suspicion. The others looked curious as well.

"How did you know that? I've never told any of you about the Rumbar Pirates, nor have I told you Laboon's name." He said in a low, dangerous tone.

Meanwhile Malaki was mentally berating himself for his slip-up. _'Stupid! I should have known that this might happen… ah well, I'll deal with the consequences'_

Malaki took a deep breath, calming his thoughts before speaking. "I know a lot of things Crocus-san. I have a question." He asked and Crocus nodded hesitantly. "What do you know of the Florian Triangle?" Malaki asked. He really hoped this didn't affect the future too much, but he was going to spill everything.

Crocus raised a single eyebrow, "The ghost sea? That place is damn dangerous, especially with the raging tides there. Once you get hit you're stuck there. Why?" He asked, but he felt dread grow in the pit of his stomach.

"Because Crocus-san the Rumbar Pirates have been trapped in there for the last 50 years." Crocus's eyes widen and the others did the same.

Crocus looked at Malaki skeptically, "How do you know that?"

"I am from the Grand Line. The ship the Rumbar Pirates used matches the criteria of the legendary ghost ship that circulates there."

"YOURE FROM THE GRAND LINE!" The other Straw Hats yelled.

Malaki looked at them like they were children, much to a certain blonde's ire.

"Nami-san, if you spoke to your sister then you saw the large crater there right?" She nodded, it was pretty hard _not_ to miss it. "That was where I crash landed."

There jaws dropped, how in the hell did he survive that?

But before they ask Crocus spoke up. "So there all dead huh? Figures… they never were the smartest bunch." He said plainly, but the tear trailing down his eye betrayed his emotions.

"You misunderstand Crocus-san, one member is still alive." Malaki said.

Crocus looked at Malaki with a heated glare. "How, you just said they've been stuck in the Florian Triangle for fifty years!" He yelled.

"Yes, I did, but one of them, the musician known as Brook survived. The only real reason he is alive is because he ate the Devil Fruit called the Yomi Yomi no mi, he is for lack of a better word, a living skeleton." He explained.

Crocus was unable to even speak, that happens when your jaw is stuck to the floor.

The others just stared at him in shock. How much did they really know about there crewmates?

"How?" Crocus said, barely a whisper. They still heard him though. "How do you know all of this? How do you know so much!?" He yelled the last part.

Malaki stared at him blankly. What could he say?

An awkward silence consumed the group and all eyes were of Malaki, who was nervous at the demanding gazes. He steeled himself; he was unemotional for a reason! Then again… it had faltered lately… maybe he shou-

He was cut off when the whale began to quake again, harder than last time.

They tried to steer the boat toward the exit and get the hell out of there, but the water was too rough. The whale kept slamming into the Red Line, shaking the place up. "With all this sloshing going on, we can't reach the exit," Nami said.

"If we don't get out of here, we could all be killed! And where the hell is Luffy?!" Zoro said. "I don't think he's here in the stomach. I saw him get tossed out of the whale's mouth!" Hopefully he hadn't fallen into the water. But if he had, all the more reason to hurry up so they could save him.

Malaki watched in disinterest as Crocus assumed position on the edge of his boat and dived into the sea of stomach acid.

When Usopp let out a startled cry, everyone turned to look at where he was pointing. They didn't see anything. "The old man jumped in!"

"What! He'll be dissolved" Nami screeched. Malaki suppress the urge to find earplugs.

"No, he is heading for the exit." Malaki pointed out. The others looked at him, "We should leave as well."

"He's right, get the oars and start paddling." Nami ordered.

Suddenly an explosion came from just above the exit. Everyone looked up in surprise as they saw three figures sailing through the air. The first two, a man and woman, Malaki knew them, but the others didn't know. "Luffy?" Malaki said thanking whatever god for saving him. Well, at least he wasn't in the water. No one really seemed surprised by the entrance.

"Hey! So you're okay!" Luffy called down, sounding very relieved. "Then save me!" The three came crashing down into the water right by the ship.

"Who are those strangers with Luffy?" Nami mused in disbelief. It would seem that, even though it wasn't water, Luffy still couldn't swim.

"Hey!" Usopp said, pointing toward the door. "The old man's getting away!" Crocus was climbing up the ladder next to the door before disappearing through a small hatch.

"Let's our captain out of the water first." After a bit of effort, they managed to pull Luffy and the two other people into the boat. The man was dressed in a in a dark green suit with an elaborate collar, orange hair and a crown, and he had a 9 printed on each cheek.

The woman had long, wavy, light blue hair pulled into a high ponytail, purple eyes and was wore a light mint-green colored jacket with fur lining around the collar and sleeves, a bustier-style shirt with white and dark blue circles on it, white shorts and white high-heeled boots. Both were carrying large rocket launchers. Vivi, he remembered right away. The appearance was unmistakable.

After what seemed like an eternity, the quaking came to a complete stop. And this time, it looked like the whale had permanently calmed down. "The whale's calmed down," Nami said as she sighed in relief .

"Well? Who are you guys?!" Luffy asked the two strangers. The two whispered something between them, but didn't answer his question.

"As long as I live, you'll never harm Laboon!"

Malaki turned to stare at Crocus, wondering how he appeared on the platform next to a ladder so quickly. Luffy frowned in confusion. "Who's the old man?"

The two laughed haughtily grabbing their weapons. "Hahahaha! Were already in the stomach! We just need one-ACK" The male said, but was cut off when Malaki appeared in front of him and connect his fist with his face, sending him rocketing into the mast.

"You will be silent and sit still or I will kill you." Malaki stated coldly.

Vivi paled, she hadn't even seen him move! Such speed was unheard of!

"O-ok" she murmured weakly as she moved to help her now unconscious partner. The others just watched in mild worry, they knew he would follow through with his threat.

He turned to the others, "We should leave now. Usopp, tie them up." Malaki ordered.

The others did exactly as he said, they knew all to well what he was capable of. Usopp tied up Vivi and the ginger haired man, and she put up no fight at all.

"Crocus-san, could you lead us out of here?" Malaki asked, the man grumbled but conceded.

Zoro and the rest got the oars from below deck and began rowing, Zoro and Malaki took one and the rest took the other as Crocus guided them in his little iron boat, and led them to an impressively build waterway to the exit. Malaki and the others were surprised the whale hadn't died from all of this.

"Why is this whale still alive?" Malaki asked.

"I may not look like it, but I am a physician. I ran a clinic on the cape years ago. I was even a ship's doctor." He said.

"A ship's doctor! Really! Luffy asked from where he was clinging to the stump that was once there figurehead. "Then be our ships doctor!"

"Ridiculous," Crocus answered as he climbed up a ladder to open a door. "I'm to old to look after a bunch of reckless children." He understood all too well how difficult the pirate life was, and he wasn't cut out for it anymore.

He began to crank a wheel to open the door, Sanji asked, "So you're a doctor living in a whale?"

"That's right. When they get this big it isn't possible to treat them form the outside." After all how could he give Laboon medicine if his skin was several feet thick? "I'm opening the door."

The door opened, and they could feel the suns rays on their skin. Malaki was personally happy to be out of the sea of acid, water was far more inviting.

Luffy laughed as stretched his arms out with uncontrolled glee. "Wow! Were outside! The real sky!"

Nami looked at their prisoners, "What should we do with these two?" she pointed out.

"Throw them over board." Crocus suggested. He didn't like them anywhere near Laboon, plus, he hadn't seen someone drown to death since he was a pirate!

"No, I will speak with the girl." Malaki said in a tone that left no room for argument. He looked at the others icily. "Alone."

Vivi fidgeted and visibly paled in the ropes that held her and her partner as Malaki approached, as far as she new he had extreme speed and strength, more than enough to turn her into paste.

He grabbed the ropes and maid his way to the back of the deck, away from the others. He set them down against the railing in the back of the ship, he was confident they couldn't get away. He summoned his Hollow Zanpakuto and cut them loose.

Vivi was flabbergasted. He threatens to kill them and now he's just letting them go?

"I have questions." He said.

She stared at him for a moment, trying to regain her nerve. "What do you want?"

"Why is a princess working for Crocodile?" He asked. Vivi's eyes widened.

"W-what do you mean?" She stuttered. How did he even know!?

"I mean why Vivi Nefertari is here while her kingdom falls apart?" He said.

If looks could kill he would have died from er piercing glare. "You know nothing of my problems!" She snapped. She was doing all that she could now!

Malaki stared at her for a moment mulling over her words. "I know everything about your predicament; it is why I'm letting the two of you go."

She blinked. What?

"What?" she thought out loud.

"I wish to help you, but I cannot leave my captain, so you may leave with your friend."

She just stared, unable to comprehend what he had just said. He wanted to _help_ her?

"Why do you want to help me?" she asked. She truly didn't understand this man at all.

Malaki sealed his Zanpakuto; she wasn't a threat to begin with. "Soon my crew will reach Arabasta and I intend to help you free your country." He said with cold conviction.

Her eyes widened, she had expected him to say many things, but that wasn't one of them. Why would one go so far to help a country they had nothing to do with?

"You should leave now. Awaken your friend and jump overboard." He didn't feel like wasting anymore time.

She nodded and slapped her friend repeatedly across the face. The third time he jumped with a start.

"Mother! Stop calling me Ginger!" He shouted.

"Calm down Mr. Nine, he have to go." She whispered.

"Huh why? And where's that cold psycho that punched me?" He asked.

"Right here."

He practically jumped out of his skin, "OH Sh-mmph!" He yelled, but was cut off by Vivi's hand clapping over his mouth.

"Calm down, he's helping us. We need to go right now." She said. The ginger stared at her before calming down. She noticed this and let him go.

Malaki had enough, he grabbed them by their collars and threw them like an Olympic Spearman.

They didn't even get a chance to yelp.

He walked back to his crewmates, who were all staring at him strangely. They heard shouting, but chose not to interfere.

"What were you talking about?" Sanji asked.

"Nothing." He replied. He looked at where the pair of attackers had once been tied and noticed something on the deck; it looked strangely like a watch.

He walked over, ignoring the questioning looks, and picked up and handed it to Nami. "This will lead us to the next island." He said.

She stared at the strange device in her hand. "What do you mean?" she asked.

"Its called a Log Pose. It locks onto the magnetic field of an island, follow it and we will eventually reach Whiskey Peak" Was all he said, and with that he disappeared with a small "Boom", leaving a baffled Nami in his wake.

[Infirmary]

Malaki sat down on a bed in, what would eventually become, there infirmary. His mind was too exhausted to deal with his crewmates zealous personalities.

He sighed to himself. He had made a real mess of the original part, not that he particularly cared, but he was all too familiar with divergent points.

He had no idea how badly he would change this world. He did know it was more than likely that there were other anomalies in this dimension, but it was unlikely that they were from his world.

Truthfully, he hoped that there was someone from his world that could help him, understand him, even if only a little. He did not miss his old life; it was filled with nothing but loneliness there. He wanted no friends, desired no family, and never showed love.

It was his lesson in life, everyone he showed love to would die. His feelings were poisonous to others, he had lost his family, his friends, and most of all the only other people he considered family.

[Flashback]

Children scurried about with toys in a painfully grey room. They all played together, it was the only way to stave off the sadness that filled this place.

All except one boy who sat curled up in a corner. The others avoided him like the plague, his presence was sadder than anything they had ever felt in there lives.

His name was Michael D Hanes.

He was seven years old. He wore a tattered white shirt and grey, torn pants. His hair was black and spiked our in every direction but up. His eyes were what unsettled others. They were cold and unfeeling, like a machine, but if one looked close enough they could see the smallest spark of insanity. Not many were aware of it but he had spent a year in an asylum. He hated the place; they thought something was wrong with him! He ended his parent's killer and believed it to be just! But he had to where a mask so he could be free of that horrible place. He became cold, so cold that his mask was no longer a mask, his emotions had been suffocated.

Though in hindsight he should've expected to be sent there, after all, he did viciously stab his parent's killer even after he was dead.

When he had been taken there they said they wanted to assess the damage to his psyche, which they found to be pretty severe. He was released about a year later broken, but not shattered.

Michael was watching the other children play with a blank gaze that showed no emotion. He found it annoying that others displayed emotion so openly. Surely they knew better? It was a weakness, a very serious one at that, thankfully he did not have it. He only watched as a reminder of that we-

"Come play with me." It took all of his control not to jump out of his skin. How had he not noticed that! He was in a _corner_ for god's sake!

He frowned to himself and looked to the source of the voice.

And his heart stopped, welling with an emotion he never felt before, and he could barely suppress it.

It was a girl, a beautiful one in his book. Her hair was silver, a trait he had never seen before and it was tied in to ponytail that were just below her ears. She was light-skinned and showed no form of injury, something most, if not all orphans have. A yellow dress complimented her hair along with a pair of blue sandals. Her eyes… her eyes made his cold heart practically burn in his chest, they were mismatched. One eye was grey like his own, but they lacked his coldness, the other was sparkling blue. The emotions in her eyes held kindness on levels he couldn't possibly comprehend. She was smiling at him and it made him feel strange.

"Why?" He asked as coldly as he could.

The girls smile hadn't faltered in the least, in fact it had grown in size. "Because silly, no one deserves to be alone." She said it as though it was the simplest thing in the world.

That smile made his chest tighten so much, he honestly though he might suffocate. This girl was doing in mere seconds what others couldn't do in an entire year!

"Why would you care?" He asked, his voice wasn't as cold as it was before.

"No one deserves to be alone."

Those words struck him deep. His eyes widened, this girl…

He felt a small, almost unnoticeable smile tug at his lips, "Ok."

Her smile practically split her face. "What's your name?"

"Michael."

She held out a hand, which he hesitantly took.

"Mines Sophie."

[Flashback End]

He grit his teeth at the memory and shook his head. He truly hated those memories; it only reminded him of his curse. It didn't matter anyways, they were gone because of him.

He fell back on the bed, he didn't need sleep, but his mind did. He closed his eyes and sighed, something he found himself doing often as the darkness pulled him into his subconscious.

[Inner World]

Malaki's eyes opened as he found himself in his inner world. He looked around, nothing really changed, a little more grass here and there, but altogether it was the same.

Getting up, Malaki looked around for his Hollow; if he was here then he may as well train right?

He suddenly ducked as a black blade swung over his head. He jumped backed, summoning his own blades in the process.

He looked and saw a grinning Igualda with an exact copy of his Hollow sword.

"Training time partner! HAHAHAHA!" He laughed maniacally as he holstered his blade.

"Training?" Malaki asked.

"Yeah training! You need to get stronger because your still weak! I could kill you without my sword!" He yelled. "Think about it. A swordsman is nothing without his sword, just as the sword is nothing without a master. If you stay weak I'll become the swordsman and you'll be the sword,"

Malaki narrowed his eyes at Igualda, "Then lets prove it." Was all he said before he leapt forward, blades poised to strike, but was stopped when he felt pain in his chest. He looked down and saw Igualda's fist lodged in his chest. He was sent rocketing into the ground with the sheer strength of the attack.

"Gotta do better than that partner." Igualda taunted with his trademarked mad grin.

Malaki stood up and pointed a finger at Igualda. "Byakurai" he whispered as a beam of electricity launched towards Igualda.

The Hollow scoffed and raised a finger in turn, red energy spiraled into existence in the form of a ball, "Cero!" He shouted.

Malaki's eyes widened as his attack was completely overpowered, he Shunpo'd before the attack reached him. He turned to his attacker, but found he wasn't there. He turned around and was met with a fist to his face that sent him flying upwards.

He climbed higher and higher, reaching up into the stormy clouds of his mindscape. He looked up and saw Igualda ahead of him, foot arched back.

He didn't even get a chance to move before Igualda kicked him in the chest, knocking the wind out of him along with some bile as he spiraled downwards to the ground.

He crashed into the earth with a mighty "BOOM" sending chunks of dirt and dead plants into the air.

Malaki was lying down in the crater, barely able to move. His clothing was torn to pieces and covered in blood, his cape was gone. His Zanpakuto were still in his hands, gripping tightly on the hilt. Multiple gashes and bruises littered his chest and a few more on his face, blood leaked from his mouth. He tried to stand; ignoring the pain shooting through his system, and used his Zanpakuto for support, but Igualda appeared right in front of him with a grin.

As much as Malaki hated to admit it, his opponent appeared to be stronger than he was.

If the beating he just received was anything to go by, then the fact that the Hollow was hitting him so rapidly he couldn't even move did.

The fact that Igualda hadn't even drawn his sword was the worst part of it all.

Igualda stopped his rapid attack and watched in amusement as Malaki dropped to the ground like a log.

"This partner, is what true power is. Now what will you do?" He asked.

Malaki looked up at Igualda, who wore a grim expression. He thought about what he said, but what could he do?

He was weak; it had been the story of his life really. He had been too weak to save his parents, to weak to get over their death, to weak to save _them_. His fists clenched as he forced himself to stand, despite the multitude of shattered bones and torn muscles.

He needed power! The power to protect what he cares about, the power to stop their deaths! The power to defeat his enemies!

Malaki looked at Igualda, eyes glowing black with determination and power. "I'll...become...stronger!" He yelled through gasps, more to himself then Igualda.

The Hollow smiled with pride, "That's what I wanna hear!" He smile turned into a mad grin, "Now its time for your tou- I mean _training_." He said in a sickly sweet tone.

Malaki felt his bones mend, and his flesh knitting itself back together, he brandished his blades without hesitation.

It was time to get stronger.


	11. Chapter 11: Instincts and Madness

"Normal speech"

'_Inner speech/thoughts'_

"_Hollow thoughts"_

Instincts and Madness

[Inner World]

Malaki fell to his knees in complete exhaustion, every muscle torn and bones shattered. He could feel them knitting back together like he was some doll _again_.

"Partner that's better, you might actually last a full five minutes!" Igualda shouted in glee as he stood above Malaki, covered in blood that definitely wasn't his.

He glared impassively at the cackling Hollow in front of him, but said absolutely nothing.

Malaki thought about his _training_, if you could call it that, and just what he had learned.

First, his training really consisted of only two things. One was training in his Hollow abilities. Sure it sounded easy, but he hadn't even unlocked one yet! Anyways… his Hollow abilities were linked heavily to his instinct, meaning that and he quotes "Your powers are like your hormones! It's completely natural and lacks control!" Not really the best saying but at least he understood. The second part of training could be described simply as _hell_. A free-for-all match, one where all abilities were allowed, and he would only use his fist. Malaki had managed to force Igualda to use his sword but it was downhill from there. He did, however gain tips by watching Igualda and his movements to improve upon his own. This allowed him to brush up on his technique, and even learn a few hand to hand combat moves.

Second, time passed at a different rate in his Inner World. A minute out there was ten in here and vice versa. He had been in his Inner World for about thirty hours, about a day and a half while on the outside would only be about three hours.

This would be useful indeed.

Lastly, his Hollow and partner was a very strange person. He seemed to jump in between rolls. At one point he was a very knowledgeable friend, and at another he was a psycho so cruel and sadistic Satan himself would nod in approval. He didn't know _what_ exactly triggered these changes, but it did seem to balance itself out. He wouldn't hold back in training, even though he only used his fist to begin with, something Malaki took as a sign of respect, and he would also support him in his own strange/sadistic way.

Malaki shook the thoughts from his head as he stood up once again, fixed up and ready to go. He grabbed both his Zanpakuto lodged in the ground in front of him.

Igualda grinned psychotically, something that sent an involuntary shiver down his spine; he knew _exactly_ what it meant.

"Ready for round… what, like thirty something?" He asked in a sickly sweet tone. Malaki merely brandished his blades in response.

They were about to attack one another when they both felt a tug in the back of their heads.

Igualda sighed in annoyance, "Sorry partner looks like you got to go outside." He turned and walked away, grumbling something about "Losing his punching bag."

Malaki shook his head, Igualda was an interesting character. He closed his eyes and let the tug in his mind win, sucking him into darkness.

[Going Merry]

Malaki sat up in his bed with a groan as he remembered everything from his inner world.

He was happy that his injuries didn't transfer to his body. From what he understood, the only way he could harm his body from the inside was if it was a battle for dominance, or he was in Bankai, and that wasn't possible for the time being.

"Oi Bandages! Nami-san wants everyone on deck, there's an island up ahead." Someone shouted (Gee, I wonder who?)

Malaki turned to the door and saw the swirly-browed cook, who seemed annoyed for reasons unknown.

Malaki stared at Sanji and stood up, he unconsciously rubbed his chest as he felt phantom pain from his fight with his Hollow. Sanji noticed this, but said nothing.

"I'll be there in a moment." Malaki said.

Sanji nodded and left the room. He idly wondered about his crewmate, they knew pretty much nothing except he was some sort of spiritual monster.

Sanji froze

_Monster…_

Why had he thought that?

It was true he didn't like the gray eyed man very much, he kept stealing his thunder! Though in honesty he could tell Malaki wasn't very interested in relationships if his attitude was any indication, but he was getting off subject! Sure Malaki wasn't human, he had said it himself, but did that make him a monster?

He began walking again, ignoring the sounds of laughter and annoyance (Luffy and Nami) as he leaned on the decks railing, staring off into the sea.

A monster, in his opinion, was something without a soul, an evil creature lurking in human skin. Was that what Malaki was?

He shook his head. No, he wasn't a monster, despite his cold shell they had all seen him smile, albeit a small one, but a smile nonetheless. He thought about those eyes of his, just what had happened to him to make him this way?

He had nearly starved to death and even he wasn't like that. Nami had lost her mother from what he gathered and she smiled all the time! Then a thought struck him.

If Nami was capable of smiling after the loss of her mother, then whatever happened to Malaki had to be infinitely worse.

He shivered at the thought; he must've had a truly horrible life .Maybe he should speak to the others about this, it was obvious he needed help.

Yes, even though he acted like a bastard sometimes, he cared about his crewmates. So it was easily warranted to have the rest of the crews concern when one of there own was emotionally damged.

He steeled his resolve, he would bring this up when he got the others alone, else Malaki try to stop him before it starts.

He heard the light patter of feet and looked back to see Malaki walking towards the sleeping, green-haired swordsman. He sat next to him, and Zorro, much to Sanji's surprise, said nothing. The two swordsmen sat shoulder to shoulder, eyes closed, but neither fell asleep for whatever reason.

Sanji stared at the two with curiosity; he had noticed the bond between the two. A strange mix of friendship and respect. He theorized it was due to there qualities, out them all, Zoro was the calmest, albeit he was a bit battle crazed. The respect, in his opinion, was a thing between swordsmen.

Though neither of them knew, he had seen there fight a few days back. He had been surprised by the respect they showed one another, unlike Zoro and himself. He had also been shocked when Malaki revealed his 'Hollow hole' as he called it, but opted to say nothing. At the time he didn't know it meant that he lacked an actual heart.

Meanwhile Malaki could feel a pair of eyes locked onto him with unnerving intensity. He opened his own and saw Sanji staring at him.

Cold grey clashed with dark blue.

Sanji's eyes were filled with an unusual mix of emotion, annoyance, sadness, and…

…Concern?

Why was he concerned about him? Did he still believe he would become a monster again? Did they no longer trust him because of his secrets?

That thought made his chest sting with a pang of sadness, something he did not like very much. For some reason, ever since his first transformation he had been more receptive to his emotion, though it was almost unnoticeable at first, it was slowly growing. It didn't bode well for him, if he felt everything then he would be consumed with sadness he had locked away so long ago. A thought clawed its way into his head.

Did he belong here?

If his crewmates don't trust him, then what was the point of being here? Even though he's been on the crew for a while, he still feels out-of-place. It was a strange feeling, like he belonged somewhere else, but he never dwelled on it. He didn't know what it was, but a part of him was telling him his stay was only temporary.

He sighed in annoyance. Why couldn't things ever be plain and simple?

The answer was, ironically enough, simple.

He lacked a heart.

It wasn't that he lacked emotions, he just lacked at heart to properly use them. His eyes flashed to when he was on the marine ship. He had ruthlessly killed them, even when they tried to run away, he had ended every last one without so much as flinching.

How many of them had begged for mercy?

How many of them had wife waiting for them?

How many of them had a son or daughter?

He didn't know, but what _truly_ sickened him was that he didn't care. He knew what he had done and felt not even an ounce of guilt over it. He was a sociopath by definition. Sociopaths know the difference between right and wrong, but simply don't care, and are infinitely more dangerous then your run of the mill psycho because they retain rational thought.

That defined him well, as much as he hated the idea. He wasn't a monster…

Not yet anyways.

He felt _another_ pair of eyes on him; he turned and saw Nami's chocolate-brown eyes locked on his figure with a dazed look.

She wasn't emotionless really, she didn't even seem aware she was staring at him, and that was a little creepy. That is, until she finally realized just what she was doing and turned away with a blush.

He raised an eyebrow in confusion, sure he could handle stares, but that was just _weird_.

In truth, Nami was just as confused. She was about to attack him and Zoro for sleeping while they did all the work, but when she looked at him something in her brain just went nuts.

"Biiiiiiig cactuses!" do you even need to guess?

Malaki looked up, and the landscape was lo and behold… surrounded by giant cacti.

"Uhh… Luffy, I think its cacti." Usopp corrected.

"Whatever!"

"There's a river leading down there. I think it's safe to land there.", Nami said.

Usopp, as nervous as ever, asked, "Er… e-e-e… don't-don-don'tcha think they're gonna be monsters or stuff like that?"

"Monsters?" asked Nami.

Sanji spoke up, "There's always the possibility that we bump in one of some sort. We're in the Grand Line after all."

"And if we meet one, it's a matter of turning the ship back and run away, right?" Asked Luffy.

"Hold a second! We have to stay here for some time, remember?" Nami said.

"For what?", Luffy asked.

"For the Log Pose to adapt itself to this island's magnetic field. Otherwise, we can't go on. It can take hours or days." she replied.

"That means…" Usopp trailed off.

"That we can't go away until the Log is set, even if monsters are chasing us…", Sanji said.

"What only upsets me even more…" Usopp replied tremulously.

"That's right. To keep thinking about it and worrying won't take us anywhere." Zoro said as he, along with Malaki stood up from there resting spots.

"Let's think about it when it happens!" Luffy said, grinning widely.

"Ok, so we're going in. But remember: don't lower your guard. Be cautious and ready to fight or run." Nami warned.

She got no reply, much to her chagrin.

We entered a misty zone that kept getting denser.

"Yeah… guys… I… I have a disease that stops me from landing in this island…", Usopp said sickly.

Malaki scoffed, "You're just terrified."

"How dare you? Never heard about this terrible disease?", he replied.

"Just calm down, there is no point in being afraid...yet." Sanji said with a smirk.

As we went forward, the mist thickened… as annoying as it was.

"What's waiting for us on the other side?" Sanji asked.

A little ahead… and, bit by bit, shadowy figures were appearing from both sides.

"There's something moving here and there.", Luffy said.

"Is it… people? Guys, there are people in the shores!" Sanji announced.

"Aaahh… damnit… looks like the worst is gonna happen… monsters or whatever it may be… bring it!", Usopp, trembling, challenged.

When the mist finally cleared… people… screaming form all sides, completely crowding the area around the river in celebration.

"Is the monster island… saluting us?", Usopp asked.

"There obviously humans." Malaki said off-handedly,

"But what's happening?" Sanji asked, puzzled.

They were shouting things like "Pirates!", "Welcome!", and "Long live the heroes of the Sea!". The Straw Hats only stared in confusion.

"Ooooohhh! There's lots of beautiful girls!" Sanji screamed.

"Where?" Usopp asked.

"There! Look!"

Malaki sighed at the two; Sanji was starting to corrupt Usopp as well.

When we landed, we were received by a small committee, and were led by a man suited like a baritone, sporting long, long hair.

"Welcome to" he coughed, interrupting himself. "Ahem, ahem… maa, maa, maa~. Welcome. My name's Igarappoi. I'm Whiskey Peak's mayor."

"Ah. I'm Luffy! Nice to meetcha. Hey, ossan, your hair's way too curly, right?" he said, pointing to the mayor's hair.

He didn't mind and said, "This is the city of the best drinks and of the most upbeat music: Whiskey Peak! Hospitality to visitors is our biggest reason to be proud. We have an ocean's worth of liquors to appease even the most eccentric of tastes. Would you like to join us in the partying and tell some of your adventures to us?"

"WITH ALL PLEASURE!", Luffy, Sanji and Usopp quickly exclaimed.

"You should not be so trusting Captain." Malaki Remarked.

Nami spoke up with a conflicted look, "Well… Igarappoi-san, how long does it take for the Log Pose to adapt to this island?"

"Log? Ah… do not worry about small details as this. Come with me! Let us prepare your well-deserved rest after this tiresome and troubled trip of yours."

He put his hands, one in Luffy's shoulder, and one in Usopp's, to say: "People, prepare the party! Sing upbeat songs for our brave adventurers!"

The night fell down and with it there was a great feast in a bar of Whiskey Peak's village.

"…So I said, coolly… 'Even if you're the mighty Sea Kings, freakin' big as you are, do not lay a finger in my comrades.'" Usopp said.

The women and girls melted into rabid squeals… and the men were impressed.

Malaki wondered how he had gotten dragged into this

"I have to admit… I didn't have the barest idea of how we were gonna escape the Calm Belt… I was trembling… of excitement!" Usopp continued.

Malaki could honestly say… Usopp was the worst liar alive.

"And as you can see, we made it out alive!" He exclaimed.

"That was great! Why doesn't your friend tell us about an adventure?" A member of the audience said. The others hummed in agreement, even Usopp.

"No." Malaki said coldly.

"Cooooommmmeeeee ooooonnnn! Just one story and I'll be quiet!" Usopp whined.

That got Malaki's attention,

"You'll shut up?" Usopp nodded.

"No more crappy stories?" a tick mark appeared on his brow, but meh nodded anyways.

Malaki tried to think of an adventure, when an idea popped into his head.

"Alright… I don't exactly have an adventure, but why don't I tell you the story of my people?" Malaki asked. The others nodded, they had been told of how he wasn't a human.

"Excellent… My people are spiritual creatures from a place called Las Noches, a massive white palace surrounded by miles upon miles of gray sand. We were a simple race bent on either power or peace. We have holes in our body symbolizing the fact that we lost our heart to gain power. Back then we did not have human forms, for we were monsters. We were lead by a man named Barragan, an incredibly powerful being that thought everyone was below him, and a self-proclaimed god. That is until_ he_ came."

Zoro left had left his spot where he was sleeping to listen, and Sanji actually _ignored_ the girls around him for once. Nami was to busy trying to win a drinking contest and Luffy was… well he was Luffy.

"His name was Aizen, a manipulative monster who's Zanpakuto, Kyoka Suigetsu, had the power of complete hypnosis. He had betrayed his government, The Gotei 13, in order to steel a weapon called the Hogyoku. The Hogyoku was a tool of incredible power, capable of giving my kind Zanpakuto, and the human bodies you see before you, we were called Arrancars. He came unto our land and defeated our king, we hated him so much, their government was the one that hunted us like rabid animals."

"Anyways… Aizen began to capture our kind to evolve us and turn us into his soldiers. He wanted to wage war on the government he once served and harvest the souls of a town called Karakura to create a key and become a god, to say the least he was insane. Those that he captured were placed in one of the ranks."

"The first were the Espada. The Espada were the ten strongest Arrancars in Hueco Mundo, and numbered from one to ten. The top four were restricted from releasing their Zanpakuto because the _sheer_ power would destroy Las Noches. They were all a strange group, one was lazy beyond belief, another was a battle crazed sexist."

"Next were the Numeros. They went from 11-99 and were made up of mostly former Espada. They had been Espada at one point, but others with more power came and slowly lost their positions."

"Last are Fraccion. The Fraccion were servants hand-picked by the Espada and were usually made up of Numeros because, although they were weaker, compared to others they were still pretty powerful. They usually work together to increase their effectiveness."

"Meanwhile The fourth Espada, by the name of Ulquiorra Schiffer Kidnapped a girl named Orihime, who had the ability to "reject" events entirely. Aizen held this ability in high regards considering its god-like power, but an orange haired boy named Ichigo and his friends attacked Las Noches to save their friend."

"At the same time Aizen and his Espada attacked Karakura town while fighting the Gotei 13. The battle had nearly destroyed the city, but the Espada had lost, and Aizen had betrayed them without an ounce of mercy."

"Ichigo and Ulquiorra had begun their battle by then, and the Espada had released his Zanpakuto atop Las Noches. He grew two terrifying black wings and his power far outgrew Ichigo's… yet he never quit."

"He refused to surrender or give up on his friend, so he fought on. Until Ulquiorra had enough and released his full power…Segunda Etapa. With this power he utterly _crushed_ Ichigo and killed him."

"Or so he thought, Ichigo tapped into something else something _dark_ and transformed… into a hollow. He had been a half-breed the entire time! But in this form he was mindless and _extremely_ powerful. He defeated Ulquiorra with disturbing ease and returned to his town to battle Aizen."

"it had been a battle between gods, both had long since transcended dimensions above our comprehension, but Ichigo was even more powerful went he became the raw energy of his strongest attack and defeated the crazed monster at the cost of his own powers."

"The few Arrancar left either killed during the War or were hunted down and killed by the Gotei 13. None of the remained, it was complete genocide, but one survived. He had a child with a human woman. The child was special, his soul was intertwined with his body instead of it being a container, but as the child gained power his father lost his own and eventually became human."

Sanji's eyes lit up with a grim understanding.

"When the child was six his parents were killed by a mere human." He spoke with almost maddening hatred. "When the child saw his parent's dead, he lost it and killed the man, repeatedly stabbing him even when he was dead. Unable to deal with the pain he closed off his heart and truly believed them his greatest weakness. On that very day he became what he was meant to be…he became a Hollow."

"The child's name was Seras D Malaki." He finished with a grim look.

Everyone one just stared with wide eyes, not believing what they just heard, Sanji, Usopp, and Zorro more so then the others.

Sanji wished he had been wrong, _but_ it was most definitely worse than Nami's loss.

Usopp and Zoro were simply floored, after all… how could someone's life be that bad.

Malaki stood up and walked to the bar, inwardly smirking at the gazes of pity locked on him.

It was an excellent plan. He had effectively sated the curiosity of his crewmates as well as creating a way to stop them from asking him in the future. Of course the pity he gained from the rest of the crowd mattered little to him, they were all insignificant to him.

He sat on a stool and waited for the bartender to come.

Sometimes he questions his own actions, and when he did he blamed his emotional state. Things like sadness and anger were becoming more evident, what he did in Loguetown was proof of that. Normally he would simply lock his emotions again, but he simply couldn't, they were far stronger than before. That happens when already massive emotions are bottled up for years on end.

"What ya need?" a childlike voice asked.

Malaki looked to the source and was a little thrown off by the man in front of him.

He had jaw-length blond hair with a straight cut and a large Cheshire grin painted on his face. He stood roughly five and a half feet and wore a brown and yellow checkered shirt with a pair of blue jeans, around his neck was a silver chain connected to a small piece of metal with symbols he didn't recognize.

But that wasn't what threw him off…

It was his eyes.

Two, nearly glowing, crimson orbs twinkled with playfulness, but when he looked deeper he saw something flickering under his red eyes, something akin to a snake in the grass, but try as he might he couldn't identify it. All though he did know it reminded him of himself.

This was not a happy thought.

He was snapped from his musings when he noticed a hand waving across his face.

"Hello? You in there silly?" The bartender asked.

Malaki shook his head, "Sorry, just… thought I saw something."

The blond tilted his head in confusion before shrugging, "Ok, what can I get you mister…"

"Malaki, Seras D Malaki, and any drink would be nice." He said.

The blonds smile threatened to split his face, "I'm Nicolas Alberstien, I'll be right back with your drink sir!" He exclaimed before scurrying off.

Malaki rose an eyebrow at 'Nicolas's' antics, it seemed he really did attract the strangest of people.

Nicolas returned seconds later with a mug full of dark purple liquid. He sat it down in front of Malaki with that weird smile of his.

"This is a special drink native to our island, it's made of special fruit so you wont get drunk at all! Isn't that great?!" He exclaimed.

Malaki sighed as he hesitantly grabbed the mug and sipped the liquid.

It took all of his willpower to not spit it out right then and there.

He could taste everything… _everything_!

He could taste the sweet grape-like fruit in the drink, as well as the drug mixed in. There was something else in the drink, it was coppery and acidic, but something felt just wrong about it, but that wasn't the problem.

The tastes were just so _strong_!

Every taste bud in his mouth was going off like firecrackers.

He shakily swallowed the drink and put the mug done.

"It was great right?" Nicolas asked.

"Y-yeah." He whispered back.

"Great! I'll see ya later buddy!" With that he zoomed off to the others at the bar.

'What in gods name was that?'

"_That, my poor little partner would be a downside to your abilities."_ Igualda interrupted.

Malaki merely raised an eyebrow, no longer surprised by his Hollows presence.

'Haven't heard from you in awhile.'

"_I was just practicing for when I take our body partner!"_ Igualda exclaimed with maniacal laughter.

Malaki sweatdropped at his partner's psychotic tendencies, he would never understand him.

'So… you said something about a downside?'

"_Uhh… yeah, I mean think about that king, dragons are just flying reptiles. So it would make sense for them to have traits of each kind right?"_ Igualda reasoned and Malaki nodded in understanding. _"So which reptile has sensitive taste buds?"_ he questioned.

Malaki thought it over for a moment, and thanked the fact that he actually paid attention in Zoology. 'Snakes right? They have the ability to literally 'taste the air' so to speak.'

"_Yeah you haven't noticed because this is the first time you've actually used your tongue for anything but talking!"_ Igualda yelled.

Malaki's lips curved up a little into an almost unnoticeable smile as he let his tongue slip out his mouth and flick back and forth.

His senses were immediately bombarded with the acrid scent of sweat and alcohol. He sucked his tongue back in at the repulsive smell.

'That was disgusting.'

"_Yeah, well… you shouldn't have done that in the middle of a party idiot!"_

'noted…'

"_Well… I'm gonna go train some more, remember king! Don't do anything I wouldn't!"_ He shouted with a perverse smile flashing in Malaki's head.

Malaki fought the urge to facepalm, now he had to deal with a psychotic _and_ perverted voice in his head.

With that he continued to test his new sense for the next couple hours, drinking the drugged drink every few minutes.

At midnight the music had faded away and all was quiet. Malaki looked around to his _almost _indisposed crew.

He looked over to Zoro's sleeping figure and moved to sit next to him.

"I know you're awake." Malaki whispered.

Zoro cracked an eye open and stared at Malaki, "How did you know?"

Malaki shrugged, "A swordsman must always be on guard right? Plus, something tells me you've realized that something is off." he said

Zoro nodded, "No one just welcomes pirates."

Malaki nodded, "True." He looked to his right when he heard a creaking sound. "Lets go, there's no point in waiting for them." Zoro nodded, and the two walked up to the roof.

The pair watched as the mayor talked with Ginger 9, Miss Wednesday, and Miss Monday.

Malaki looked to Zoro, who looked excited at the prospect of a fight. An idea formed in his head as did a genuine smile.

"Zoro."

"Yeah?"

"Want to make a bet?" he asked with a small smirk.

Zoro rose an eyebrow, "Maybe, what is it?"

"If I kill more than you, then you will teach me everything you know about swordsmanship." He said.

He stared at Malaki before shrugging, "And if I win?" he asked.

Malaki tilted his head in thought, "What do you want?" he asked confusedly.

Zoro's smirked, "Answers."

Malaki raised an eyebrow, "Answers?"

"Yeah, truthful ones, to whatever question I ask you." he said.

Malaki thought it over, it wouldn't be that bad, and he just wouldn't lose.

"Alright, I'll start us off." Malaki said and Zoro nodded.

He smiled despite himself before he Shunpo'd behind a crowd of bounty hunters. He summoned his Hollow Zanpakuto and held it horizontally as he began chanting in a low whisper.

"Flames that arc the heavens, come down and sear their bones. Unleash your bellowing roar Raijin and bathe them in your raging thunder."

One of the bandits heard his murmurs and turned around.

"The he-"

"Hado #32: **Ōkasen! (Yellow Fire Flash!)" He yelled.**

A horizontal arc of yellow energy burst from the center of Malaki's Zanpakuto, burning right through everything it touched. The bounty hunters didn't even have a chance to scream when the attack cut the group in half. The remainder of the attack crashed into the ground behind Igarappoi and his group, sending them flying into a nearby wall.

Malaki smirked; he created the chant himself, not the attack. It was something he picked up while fighting his Hollow.

"God damnit, now you're ahead of me!" Zoro shouted as he jumped into the nearest crowd, swords drawn.

"That's twenty-three right there Zoro!" Malaki shouted before he Shunpo'd into the center of another group. He summoned both his blade and started beating down his enemies.

Both raised their swords as they got into their stance and charged at the blond with their swords pointed forward. Malaki simply waited as they came, and began to dodge as soon as the first strikes began. Dodging, parrying left and right, side stepping side to side or ducking underneath as he retreated, drifting further away from crowd, with the masked bounty hunters chasing after him, not even managing to nick him a few times as he purposely slowed down to dodge some of their strikes. Malaki sighed as he was kept on the defensive, using the sheath as means of parrying some of the sword strikes. His enemies were too weak to take his time with.

"Weaklings." He whispered coldly.

He began cutting them down with brutal efficiency. Cutting his enemies down as he slowly walked back to the crowds of bounty hunters. A cleave here, a beheading there, even going as far as taking low swipes at fleeing swords-no they weren't worthy of such a name, taking low swipes at fleeing _garbage_, effectively tearing there Achilles tendon.

They tried in agony, begging weakly for mercy, but Malaki would have none of this and decisively pierce their hearts. Not so much as a twitch as he killed them all.

'Guess I really am a sociopath'

He suppressed a scoff at the obvious statement in his mind.

Other bounty hunters could only watch in horror as the Hollow swordsman cut through their friends and allies like they weren't even there, leaving none alive as he continued his tirade of blood.

A group of bazooka wielding bounty hunters lined themselves up in preparation to kill the demons that were _massacring_ them.

When they saw it…

Those _eyes_…

Cold gray eyes that pierce their very _soul_! They were paralyzed in fear as a strange weight slammed into their shoulder.

Before any were able to utter a word, they found the air leaving their throat. They then felt an unbelievable force lifting them from the ground and slamming them into nearby buildings, they screamed in pain alerting the others. Others turn to see Malaki's aura of power suffocating them.

Malaki panted lightly, he could do this but it did have its toll.

Seeing the one they saw as friends in pain cause anger to rise off of them. They pulled out each of their weapons and prepared to kill the bastard. The only one that didn't bother to move was Vivi; who was looking at the scene with fear in her eyes, and Ginger nine, who was to terrified to even try.

The bounty hunters open his left eye and looked down at Malaki's, fear raised in him just seeing them. Malaki gritted his teeth before his Reaitsu flared to life around him and blasted out around him. His power swept over all them, and each of them eyes went wide with horror at what they saw. Each of them seeing their deaths, each of them either being ran through or cut completely in half. As fast as it came it vanished, leaving each of them dropping to the ground and their power leaving them.

The others were staring at Malaki's form in fear. Oddly enough, the only one that didn't seem to see their death before their eyes were Ginger nine, Igarappoi and Vivi. The glow in Malaki's eyes stopped and it let go of a shocked looking Vivi who also had tears in her eyes. Malaki looked down at the weaklings in disgust before walking away, passing by each of them with a sicken look on his face. He stopped in front of Vivi and tapped her shoulder, which the bluenette flinched at.

"I have no time to waste with these fools." He stated. "This should be proof enough that I can help you." before vanishing; only leaving a small swirl of dust.

Malaki continued his campaign, killing men left and right with the occasional Kido blast, but remained more or less unchanged… until he felt _it._

His blood boiled with something corruptive and black, and his perception of the world seemed to twist as he, for lack of a better word, lost it.

What was originally a massacre escalated into a gruesome tirade of insanity.

Cold and decisive kills became violent gory slashes that tore flesh like an animal.

Kido attacks became uncoordinated punches and kicks that shattered bone and smashed skulls.

A cold demeanor, lacking any form of emotion became an all _too_ emotional one, but it reeked of insanity.

Malaki suddenly stopped in his tracks, his head bowed, but not in defeat. The last bounty hunters wanted to run, oh how he wanted to run, but he just _couldn't_! He was literally frozen in fear!

Malaki's head lifted slowly, and his lips stretched open in a strange, cold smile. A chill rippled down his spine.

Malaki's eyes had gone wide and glazed. None recognized the look.

Madness.

"That's more like it," He whispered.

Malaki extended his hands. "T-t-this feeling… what is it?" he said quietly as he sealed his blades into their dormant form.

His hands cupped his face as he began hyperventilating. "I-I can't stop it. It's in my blood. It's making me drunk, drunk on your fear! Its-Its amazing! Better then any drink, any food, even desert! I can't stop it, but hopefully someone can." He whispered.

Malaki giggled a high-pitched, unnatural sound.

"Stop this!" Zoro yelled, fear edging into his voice.

He had been fighting his own opponents when he heard screams, inhumanely agonizing screams. After he finished off another group he searched for Malaki, but instead he found the bodies, if you could even call them that, left in his stead. What he saw would be forever etched in his mind.

Malaki ignored him. He cackled and charged at the last man, who had already fallen unconscious, one hand upraised. He would have killed him if Zoro hadn't jumped in front of him and stopped the clawed digits with his swords.

Malaki pushed for his kill, but Zoro would not yield. Zoro, realizing his situation jumped afoot in the air and slammed both feet into Malaki's chest. Malaki stumbled back and clutched his chest, which he hadn't shielded with Hierro, in pain as he felt broken ribs pull themselves together as Reaitsu flooded his bloodstream.

Malaki's mouth opened, and a piercing, inhuman scream erupted from his throat. Another scream mixed in with his, it sounded like dozens were screaming at the same time, that of a Hollows .Its voice resonating with Malaki's. Zoro fell back, and others cried out, clamping there hands to there ears.

He'd never felt anything like it, that sound—the way it wormed through his skull and into his thoughts, shaking them apart. His legs gave out, and he fell to his knees, eyes shut tight as the scream echoed around and around in his head. When it finally died down, he looked up and saw Malaki on his hands and knees as black blood leaked out of his mouth.

Wait _black?_

Zoro had no time to dwell on the thought when he heard _more_ psychotic laughter.

"AHAHAHAHA, nee-chan will be so happy!" A voice called.

Malaki was still giggling, a jittery, wild sound, when he looked up, and his eyes widened even further.

It was Nicolas from the bar!

Standing on the top of a nearby building, Nicolas smiled madly. "it seems you recognize me! I'm flattered! Hey, you seem to well maybe you should have another Black Blood Cocktail! AHAHAHAHA!" He exclaimed, his smile never wavering.

Malaki's madness diluted mind worked as hard as it could, searching his memories for an answer to what he just heard. The term 'Black Blood' sounded familiar.

When Malaki drank the purple, drug laced drink at the bar, he hadn't realized it. The coppery twisted taste in his mouth wasn't apart of the drug…

…It was _blood._

Black Blood to be more accurate, curtsey of one Nicolas Alberstien.

Nicolas saw the look of understanding, "So you know what I did to you huh? Well, Id loved to see more, but you know what they say-" as he spoke two fountains of black, corrupted blood shot out of his back and condensed into a pair of smooth black wings. "-Gotta fly!" He shouted before leaping off the roof before his wings caught air and soared into the sky with a mad cackle.

Malaki just started as he felt the boiling sensation in his blood dissipate and panted as exhaustion hit his body. Zoro watched Malaki cautiously, not wanting to deal with another psychotic fit.

Malaki just looked at the ground tiredly. It was beginning to look incredibly inviting. Neither of the two were aware that Nami, Usopp, and Sanji had already made a deal with Vivi for protection against Mr.5 and Mrs. Valentine.

No one was aware that Luffy was intent on killing Malaki for the particularly gruesome scene of, what he believed to be, good and kind people.

Zoro stood up and began walking towards the near unconscious Malaki and plopped by his side.

"One hundred and seven teme, I win." He managed to say.

Malaki smirked a little, "One hundred… and… five… I guess…you win." He finished between pants.

Zoro smirked as he patted Malaki on the back. "I'll still teach you, but we gotta a lot to talk about."

"TEME!" An enraged voice bellowed, Zoro barely had time to doge as a rubber fist rocketed into Malaki's head, sending him skidding into a building.

Zoro locked gazes with his captain, who was literally _burning_ with righteous rage. He jumped in front of his captain, blades raised.

"Stop."

Luffy snarled, "STOP! You want me to stop! He killed at _least_ two hundred innocent people and you want _me _to stop! No! He needs to be punished! No one in my crew kills innocent people!" He ranted as he practically threw Zoro out of the way.

He leapt at Malaki, who had just mustered the strength to stand, and punched him in the gut with his left hand and grabbed his head with his right and slammed it into the ground.

Malaki stood up through sheer force of will as flesh pulled itself back together.

"Cap-" He was cut off when his captain grabbed his throat and slammed him into a wall.

"Capt-" his blood began to heat up.

**PUNCH!**

"Captai-" black blood pulsed in his veins once more. His punches were only skin deep now.

**PUNCH KNEE**

"Captain!" He was beginning to lose control.

**PUNCH KNEE PUNCH**

"Luffy!" He shouted through clenched eyes as he waited for the strikes to come, but they never did. He looked up into Luffy's glossy eyes, no longer holding rage, but a sincere sadness.

"Why?" he murmured.

"This town is made of bounty hunters Luffy; they intended to kill you and the rest." He whispered.

Luffy stared at Malaki with wide eyes, "W-what! But they invited us here and everything!"

"They drugged the drinks and food so they could catch you off guard."

Luffy abruptly dropped Malaki, realizing what he had done. "S-so I nearly killed you… because you saved me?" The last part was a horrified whisper.

He prided himself on living for his nakama, his friends. To him it was just another word for extended family, and to hurt someone for saving you… it was unforgivable.

Malaki stood up as he felt his body finish the last of its repairs and waved off the comment.

"Captain, it is hardly that easy to kill me, and it was a misunderstanding anyways. I-I lost control out there and what you saw out there was something you never should have." He said reassuringly as he grasped Luffy's shoulder. Luffy put up a small smile, but was inwardly still had lingering feelings.

"Ok you pansies, that's enough of that." The duo turned to see the rest of the Straw Hats, along with Vivi and Igaram.

"Took you long enough." Malaki whispered before passing out form both mental and physical exhaustion.

[Inner World]

Inside of Malaki's soul, Igualda was wondering how this had all happened.

Igualda scowled at the land before him, to judge just how much had been changed by whatever this was.

Everything was solid black. The grass, the sky, and the sea were black as night, and raging madly, as though made of metal (or more accurately, blood).

So the corruption was indeed here to stay. He glared at the ground, and somehow he knew it was glaring back. It was fortunate he had started to push back against this intrusion when he had. It had consumed the entire sea, which raged with madness at one moment and calmed the very next. The black terror wasn't fading from Malaki's blood, it was just the opposite. It was integrating itself into his genetic structure.

He allowed himself a small smirk. He would normally be fighting this substance, but an entirely different idea came to mind.

The property of the blood was simply to good to pass up. If he mutated the stuff during Malaki's next transformation, he could make something magnificent.

He fired a cero at the sea, which quite literally _consumed_ the attack, and he chuckled darkly.

_Magnificent indeed_

But still he _hated_ being played for a fool. It was all that… bastards fault! He didn't know how he got here, but he knew that if she was ever freed he'd kill him. He strongly suspected that the man… Nicolas… was a Kishin. He had been under the impression that only one Kishin existed, but it was possible for him to be wrong. He had suspected the moment he had felt his soul. No other being could give off such a feeling of malevolent madness like that.

He sighed, it didn't matter, he was the one with a gift and next time he saw Nicolas…

…_he would tear him limb from fucking limb!_


	12. Chapter 12: Bonds And Memories

I feel the clarification is necessary for the term Kishin so here you go.

Kishin (Demon God) is the product of someone who consumes thousands of innocent souls. Anyone who is a Kishin has unimaginable power, comparable to a god. They are also living beacons of madness because its soul wavelength it can potentially consume the entire world in madness.

AN: Nicolas is a Kishin egg that is very, _very_ close to becoming a full on Kishin.

**Disclaimer: I obviously don't own One Piece**

XxxxxX

Bonds And Memories

[Dream, General POV]

In the warm summer of Maryland, a couple, about 14 years of age, sat on a bench in the park, and licking an ice cream cone.

The male was five feet tall with spiky black hair and soft gray eyes. He wore a skin-tight black t-shirt and blue jeans that showed his thin, but muscular, build. He had a vanilla ice cream cone in hand and his other was wrapped around the girls waste.

The girl had beautiful silver hair tied into a ponytail that reached halfway down her back and mismatched gray and blue eyes that shined with kindness. She wore a pair of skin-tight blue jeans, and a yellow t-shirt that hugged her curves, showing off her B-cup breasts. She leaned into her boyfriend's chest. A small ring on her finger, a memory that held hope for their future.

"Michael do you wanna go to the pier?" The girl asked.

'Michael' shrugged, "Sure, it reminds me of those eyes of yours Sophie." He said with a smile.

'Sophie' giggled and pecked his cheek. "Lets go then." She said with a smile.

The two stood up and began walking, arms link to the pier. As they walked Michael idly thought of the past seven years.

Yes, they were still apart of the orphanage, but they grew to bear it with the company of one another. He had been initially cold to her, but after three years she had utterly destroyed the walls around his heart. He told her everything about him, and she did the same, though it wasn't much of a story. She had been at the orphanage her entire life, never even meeting her parents. After that their relationship only increased until they were eleven.

That was the day Michael finally understood that strange feeling in his chest when he heard her laugh. The tightening of the chest when she smiled.

It was love.

He loved her so much. So he asked her if she would be his. He expected rejection, or a confused stare, but he had received much different. He received a tearful yes and a spine shattering hug.

She went on to explain how she had the very same feeling for him the first time they _meet_.

Apparently when she first saw him, she felt something that she couldn't understand, so it was natural curiosities that lead her to him. When she saw his eyes however, she knew… she finally knew what love was.

That day had been the first time Michael openly cried since his families' death.

And here he was walking to the pier, with the girl he loved wrapped around his arm.

Others were staring at them as they walked by, whispering on how 'cute' the couple was. Michael shifted uneasily; he trusted very few outside his loved one and his blood brother Alex.

Alex.

Their meeting had been…strange. When he first met him it was, ironically, at the pier, it was a date with Sophie. They were walking down the pier when the heard a ruckus. When Michael looked down he saw a local gang, the Sick Fangs, attacking some blond-haired kid. Michael intervened, and together they defeated the gang members.

Since then, the two had become brothers in all but blood, hence the term 'blood brother'. They still had fights with the Sick Fangs, but it wasn't nearly as often, he and Alex had become excellent fighters compared to the rest. Together they would protect his girlfriend, who the blond saw as a sister, from anyone.

He was snapped from his musings when he felt something tap his arm. He turned to Sophie scowling at him.

"Argh you're doing it again Michael!" she groaned and held her head in her hands. "You're slipping back into the whole _'Everyone is a danger to me'_ mode again."

"Maybe I am," he said as he chuckled at her expression, "but we all know how much people like it when I do," he finished with a whisper, sending chills down Sophie's spine.

After walking in silence for another fifteen minutes, he broke the silence that had settled over them, "Come on! I we need to get their soon so I can meet with Alex."

"H-Hang on a second," Sophie called out as she groaned "Does he need help with _another_ gang or something?" she asked, watching as he stumbled again at her questioning.

"I…I don't know," he said as he scratched the back of his neck in confusion. "I mean it looks that way, but I promised I'd be there for him. I owe you two the world, you're my closest friends."

"Oh really now?" she asked with a smirk. "So if I wanted to go shopping one weekend you'd happily come with me to help me pick out whatever I want right?"

As he was about to retort that, but he stopped when a thought popped into his head.

"Well…I could do you one better Sophie," he said with a grin, as he leaned in to whisper in her ear. "After all, I know everything from your cup size to the size of the shorts you love to wear so much. Knowing that means that I could plan out an entire wardrobe if I wanted to," he said and watched her blush crimson at his words.

"Y-You're bluffing," she whispered out, scowling as he just chuckled again.

"Am I? I'm more than willing to prove it by picking out something for you to wear. Though to prove that I was right, maybe I should be there so that you can try it on and show me," he said, causing her blush to deepen. "You mentioned this weekend?

By all means let's go then."

"Michael…" she hissed out through gritted teeth, "You have exactly five seconds to run before I start pounding you into the ground."

Seeing her roll up her short sleeves, Malaki continued. "Hmm, exposing even more skin now Sophie? That's great since you're going to need to lose those inhibitions of yours sooner or later," he said with a laugh, sprinting off in the direction of the pier with an irate girlfriend on his tail.

They reached the pier minutes later, Michael leaned against the pier slightly winded, and Sophie sat on a bench, to tired to attack her flirtatious boyfriend. Michael smile dropped when he heard what sounded like a fight from under the deck. Michael sighed as he jumped over the railing.

Loud bangs filled the air as harsh grunts and yelps called out. Swift motions in the air followed these, silhouettes of strikes faster than a serpent. In this darkness only five could be seen, one so small it could only be an adolescent.

His golden eyes shined with fury, held down by pure will. He had blonde hair and a torn pair of blue jeans. He lacked a shirt, showing of his muscular figure.

The other four struck as one, the first aiming for the adolescent's head. The adolescent waved his hand, then the attacker tripped and he took hold. Using little effort the adolescent tossed the first attacker into the next. The third went to kick, but the adolescent was ready. He leapt up, gripping the attacker's head and slammed his knee hard into it. He fell back into the ground unconscious. The others got back up, surrounding him as Alex panted in exhaustion.

"Well, well, well, what do we have here?" a sinister voice asked from afar. They both turned to see someone of their age approaching. He was thin, muscular and tall, his hair was black and spiky, and his skin light but he was far from normal. His eyes held evil, not unlike many Alex has faced. "Four new students to learn the meaning of pain?" he asked, dark chuckle added.

The others shivered subconsciously, except Alex who frowned. They didn't even have a chance to respond before he was upon them with vicious, but accurate, strikes that cracked bone and tore ligaments. Alex jumped into action striking pressure points with serpent-like movements. It didn't even take a minute to defeat them.

The two stood at the center of the unconscious group and the blond-haired fighter sighed.

"You didn't have to help you know?"

Michael merely smiled, "Didn't have to, but I did."

Alex smiled and tapped his arm playfully. "You come here with sis?" he asked.

Michael nodded, "She chased me all the way here." He said with a smirk as he began to climb back up to the deck and Alex followed.

The two walked over to Sophie and sat on either side. Sophie eyed Alex and sighed, "So I was right huh?" She asked.

Alex shrugged, "What can I say; everyone wants a piece of this." He said, gesturing his chest with a smirk.

Sophie puffed her cheeks out indignantly. "Yeah right, your just that annoying." She said and Alex deflated like a balloon hit by a needle.

Michael chuckled, "Stop it, your flattening his ego." He said sarcastically.

Sophie scoffed, "Its already bigger then his head."

Things went like this as the trio traded banter and laughed at the others misfortune until the night crawled across the sky.

Alex sighed in content, he loved times like this, but alas, all good things come to an end. He heard the pattering of feet and his eyes widened in recognition and he paled. Thirty men walked towards them, every one of them had a small piece of cloth wrapped around one limb or the other. Some of the men looked amused in a sick sense, others had their faces twisted into angry snarls.

The cloth itself was striped black and red. On there was a green sickle, the curve of its blade had a purple skull.

The symbol of the Sick Fangs

Michael noticed the pale face of Alex and he followed his gaze, his features instantly hardened at the sight. Sophie and Alex unconsciously shivered at the cold shift in the air. Though Michael was a kind person now, his cold personality resurfaced when his friends were threatened.

Michael stood up and locked eyes with Alex. "Stay here and watch Sophie. I'll deal with the garbage." He commanded with a cold tone. Alex nodded and stood up, tensing his muscles just in preparation.

Michael walked towards the mob without the slightest hint of fear. He was a skilled fighter; mere weapons were nothing to him. He used his photographic memory to memorize key parts of the human body, along with basic stances in multiple fighting styles. Despite his age, he was a genius; next to none his age rivaled his knowledge. With the combined knowledge he could efficiently destroy his opponents from the inside.

Michael stopped in front of the mob, his face impassive, prepared to do _anything_. He had killed before. Some piece of garbage attempted to rape Sophie on their way back to the Orphanage. Needless to say the man was found dead in an alleyway, multiple bones shattered.

The mob and Fangs began to circle him with something akin to fear. They knew what he was capable of, it was hard not to. After his ruthless dealings with them he had gained the nickname _Snowstorm_.

One walked up, apparently the leader. He was a muscular fellow, clad in black khaki's and tee; he had a stereotypical punk Mohawk. He stared at Michael with narrow blue eyes. "So you're the _Snowstorm_ everyone's afraid of huh?" He scoffed. "You don't seem like much."

Michael shrugged his shoulders, "That's what the others before you said before I incapacitated them." His voice was emotionless, the perfect picture of apathy.

The man snarled at him, "Yeah, well they weren't the third in command, Luther the _Blood Spreader_ Jones." 'Luther' said, arrogance practically seeping from his pores.

Michael had waited long enough and initiated the attack. He leaped towards the _Blood Spreader_ and slammed both his fists into his stomach, knocking him back. The surrounding members roared with anger, bats and knives raised as they charged him.

IT happened in a mere two minutes.

He was in darkness, complete and total darkness. All sound was gone, all sight was gone, and nothing was here but him and his strikes. Like fluid he moved, leapt into the air and struck his opponents. The tense air flowed around him, war itself in one man. But it was death the he radiated, perhaps even vengeance. As he landed he dodged to the side, something struck the ground. He could hear the wood floor break from impact, whatever was lodged at him was deadly.

More came, he flipped back to avoid them, each passing just under his head. Just as his feet touched ground a metallic click caught his ear. The turned his body, standing in place and narrowly dodging the income fire. Once it was done he took a breath, steadying himself. He ran forward, body low to the ground and jumped upwards, knocking the gun out of the offender's hand. He delivered a brutal punch to the man's Adams apple.

The fight was basically a repetition of his attacks, permanently injuring most of his opponents, and the rest were going to be hospitalized to say the least. The victory was short-lived when he heard a gunshot, and the feminine scream that followed it.

He turned around and his blood ran cold.

Luther was standing proud with a crazed smirk and a smoking gun in his hand. Alex was on the ground below, clutching his bleeding shoulder as blood painted his shirt red. Sophie was crying uncontrollably, attempting to help her fallen friend.

Michael was about to run forward to _kill_ the bastard, but a gun to Sophie's head stopped him.

Luther grinned sadistically, as he pulled a struggling Sophie close to him. "Come closer and she dies!" he exclaimed, poking her head with his gun for good measure. He began backing up to the end of the dock.

Michael ran up to Alex and kneeled, checking his wounds. "Damnit, this is pretty bad, you need to get to a hospital." He whispered, he kept his eyes on Luther. He patted Alex on the shoulder, "I'll be right back ok?" he asked, and Alex nodded slowly. Michael began to slowly approach Luther, who seemed more scared than anything.

Luther shakily raised his weapon to Michael. "Come any closer and she dies!" He yelled. He jabbed Sophie in her gray eye with the butt of his gun roughly to prove his point. Sophie screamed in pain as some blood seeped out of the, now swelling, socket before falling unconscious.

Michael's rage burst through the rough as he ran forward, intent on not killing, but fucking _maiming _the motherfucker!

Luther, in his frenzied state threw Sophie's limp form over the deck and into the dark night sea. Luther quickly raised his gun and shot him in the leg at point-blank range. Michael ignored the pain as he grabbed Luther neck and twisted it with an audible "SNAP" he died. Michael dropped to the ground, the pain fully kicking in.

But Michael didn't care, because he came to a horrifying realization.

Sophie was in the water, and she didn't know how to swim!

He dragged his body towards the end of the deck, but it was beginning to be too much to handle. The bullet had cleanly exited out the back of his leg, but he was loosing blood.

He stuck his head through the railings, eyes scanning over the dark waters. But there was nothing…

Not even a splash!

Michael was frozen…there was nothing he could do…nothing…like a stupid fucking kid!

"Sophie!" He shouted. "Please, please Sophie swim!" he yelled, but he got no reply.

"SOPHIE!" he cried in anguish before dropping unconscious.

The last thing he heard was the ringing of sirens.

XxxxxX

[Going Merry, General POV]

Malaki's eyes shot open at the same time as he screamed Sophie's names.

He finally collapsed inwards and sobbed. He gasped and his slitted pupils dilated with horror as his mind reeled with memories and his claws scraped against the flesh of his arms.

"I let you die Sophie…why did I do that to you? IS THAT HOW WORTHLESS I AM?" Malaki yelled at himself.

He panted heavily as the blackened cells in his body pumped excitedly. He stopped and took deep breaths in hopes of stopping the madness before it got out of control.

"Who is Sophie?" Malaki jerked his head to the side, and his eyes widened at the bluenette.

He was so self-absorbed with his own issues; he had yet to notice Vivi had been sitting next to him the entire time. His tear streaked eyes looked down in shame and self-disgust.

"The girl I loved…" he whispered, but Vivi heard.

"Oh…." She trailed off, obviously uncomfortable.

An awkward silence passed between the two. At least, until Malaki abruptly stood up from his position on the bed. He was fully clothed, thank god, except his boots, mask, gloves and cap were left behind. He really didn't care; they were only restrictive at this point.

Malaki turned to her finally and Vivi was shown the extent of Malaki's pain those eyes held. It took Vivi aback slightly, something that surprised her; Malaki looked completely defeated, almost as if he had lost his will to fight.

"Please don't tell anyone else…" he murmured.

"Ok…"

Malaki vanished with a small "BOOM", leaving the bluenette to her own musings.

Meanwhile Malaki stood on the railing of the back of the ship, right behind Nami's Mikans. He sighed sadly as he sat down, leaning against the wooden rails.

Why was he reliving this now?

Was this the black blood in him trying to drive him mad? If so, it's doing a splendid job.

He shook his head, he needed to get off this subject, maybe find something to read. He let a small smile cross his features, reading always calmed him down.

He reached into the small pouch on his waist and pulled out a two journals, one of which looked like it had been shredded. Malaki grimaced, that was the journal he wrote in.

The other journal read 'Romeo Conbolt's Adventure Journal!' He carefully opened the first page and immediately noticed the tear stains on the paper.

_October 17__th_

_Hanataro-san said that it would be good for me to write a journal, something about 'helping me get over traumatic experiences' but it doesn't matter._

_Little over 5 years ago I landed in this place all alone in a desert. I honestly thought I would die, and honestly?_

_I hoped I did at the time._

_I've lost everyone, my father, jiji, and everyone else at Fairy Tail. I'm not even 13 and I'm already more mature than half the adults here! _

_I mean the greatest pirate in this world, Gold Roger, is a complete idiot! He grinned while he was being executed, like he just won the game!_

_I met Hanataro-san by accident; I was wandering the desert, desperate to find_ anything_. But the heat was too much for me; I passed out and thought I was dead. When I woke up I realized that I wasn't in the desert anymore. More importantly, I wasn't in the desert anymore. It was obvious someone found me, but I was more focused on the glass of water next to me._

_That's why I was startled when someone walked in, and I was immediately on the defensive. He eventually calmed me down and we talked. He was kind and very shy, not unlike me in my earlier years. We both found out that we didn't belong here, and with a little egging from me, I convinced him to sail the seas with me. It was by no means easy, it took me nearly three months to change his mind. _

_We were almost immediately attacked by pirates, but I learned that day that Hanataro wasn't weak at all. If anything, he was far more powerful then I believed! He just disappeared out of thin air and started cutting them down like they were nothing! It was quite a shock to see, the normally kind swordsman beat the crap out of people. Maybe this world has hardened him as well?_

_That's all this time…maybe writing a journal won't be so bad…_

Malaki was going to read on, this was truly interesting. Hanataro was from the Bleach universe, a shinigami from the 4th division medical corps. He was a die-hard pacifist, so it was hard to believe that he would do such a thing as attack someone. But who was he to judge? People, after all, do change.

But sadly he couldn't, they were close to Little Garden now. He had to be ready for anything now. Nicholas reminded him that he wasn't the only one here, and not everyone here had good intentions. There could very well be others who seek to _kill_ his crewmates.

He put the journal back into the pouch as he stood up and walked down the deck towards where the others were gathering.

He resisted the urge to sigh. He had missed the meeting with Robin, as well as his best chance to end Mrs. 5 and Mrs. Valentine. But he would deal with them when the time came.

"Nami–san are we headed the right way?" He as he approached from behind the group.

They all jumped and turned to him with wary looks. Malaki sighed, so they were told about his psychotic breakdown huh? Things just got a lot harder on this ship.

Nami was the first to recover, ''Just a sec, I'll check.'' Nami gave her affirmative and looked at the Log Pose. ''Turn us hard to port!" she commanded.

''Aye-Aye!'' They all shouted and began heading the leaded way, the previous situation all but forgotten. A few minutes later, the jungle-like island was right in front of us. ''No doubt about it, we're directly line up with Whiskey Peak. Our next destination is that island!''

''So this is it!'' Luffy gaped. ''The second island of the Grand Line!''

"Little Garden…" Malaki whispered.

As we neared the jungle island, we were surrounded by wildlife everywhere with the giant trees and vines.

''So this is Little Garden'' Luffy said while looking around the jungle.

''What the hell do they mean 'little'?'' Zoro mused out loud.

Malaki scoffed, "It's the worst pun ever created."

"Damn straight." The green haired swordsman grumbled.

XxxxxX

"This world is weird."

Everyone couldn't help but agree with Malaki's statement.

They were steering the boat into a river that went deeper into the island when a massive dolphin suddenly leaped over them.

Said dolphin was eaten in midair by a tiger, which was taken away by a pterodactyl.

Yeah, weird was a good word.

Shortly after Luffy and Vivi left to 'explore' the island.

Sanji and Zoro started a competition about who could bring the biggest game from the island.

Malaki was naturally curios and wandered into the jungle despite Nami and Usopp's pleading.

Nami and Usopp left, having been too afraid to stay on the boat.

Malaki was walking through the jungle with no real destination; his mind was focused on other things.

Alex and Sophie.

He hated himself so much because of his tremendous failure. Despite his strength at the time he was still to weak, he lost them both. Sophie drowned, probably hoping he would save her and Alex… well it was arguably worse.

He made to the hospital, but it was already too late. The bullet punctured his right lung and his blood seeped into it. By the time they reached the hospital Alex had already drowned in his own blood.

That was the day he believed his love was truly a curse. He'd lost his parents, his girlfriend, and his brother figure. All of which died in a horrible way.

Suffice to say he lost most of his sanity that day.

Focusing his Reaitsu to his feet, he leaped upward, soaring several dozen yards into the air, before landing effortlessly among the fronds of a particularly tall palm tree. He absently wondered if he could fly.

It hurt…it hurt so much, and he wouldn't let himself trust anyone with his burden, but it was _his_ burden. No one deserved this, except himself.

He stopped again and blinked. Where was he?

The first thing he noticed was that, to the east and west of his position, two huge, white-gray masses, resembling. . . . _skulls?__. _. . .Rose from the canopy. His eyes narrowed. Very curious. He knew of no living animal large enough to fit proportionately with the _'skull'_ like things, but then…this _was_ the One Piece world.

He shook his head slightly.

This was _not_ the time to debate the fauna of _Earth! _

Gritting his teeth, Malaki scanned the rest of the landscape. The ground was covered almost entirely by jungle, punctured only by the rare meadow and the river that flowed from the southwest. To the north and south, volcanoes smoked, one having just erupted, presumably seconds before his arrival.

_BOOM!_

Malaki's eyes widened as the tree underneath him swayed dangerously.

_'__Where did that shockwave come from?'_

He grappled with the fronds in order to stay upright. Sadly, the palm couldn't handle the stress. _KREAAAK!_ Malaki twisted midair, pushing off the tumbling trunk with his toes. Shooting upward, he made a grab from the nearest standing tree, which happened to be yet another palm, a different variety of course. His clawed hands closed around a bushel of its fronds, and he pulled himself out of the way of a squadron of flying debris, only to have the tree crack under the unexpected weight. He growled in annoyance.

The swordsman flew into the air, twisting mid-leap in order to maximize distance—

_BOOM!_

The island shook as yet another tremor rocked the vicinity.

He grimaced as his trajectory lilted to the left. The problem you ask? He was going to shoot by the tree he was targeting in favor of the cold, hard ground. He made a grab for the trunk, claws digging into the bark for friction. The action slowed his speed enough that he was able to swing his legs around the trunk and flip onto the palm's top. Thankfully, this particular palm was made of better stuff than its brethren.

_"__DORRYYYY!__"_

_"__BROGYYYY!__"_

_BOOM!_

Malaki gritted his teeth. There had been voices, he was certain of it, right in the smack-dab center of the figurative storm. 'Dory' and 'Brogy' were clearly going to be difficult to get close to. He sighed, this was probably gonna end with him getting hurt, but at least he could heal.

His ash gray, slit eyes dilated as he blasted forward, shattering the poor palm's trunk in the process. Flying for several meters, he touched down on another tree before leaping once more, decimating that plant as well.

_BOOM!_

_BOOM!_

_BOOM!_

The shock-waves were increasing in frequency. Hopefully, whoever had been there would still be breathing.

_CRASH!_

The swordsman annihilated yet another piece of vegetation.

_BOOM!_

_"__I _**_WILL_**_ WIN, DORRY!__"_

_"__NOT A CHANCE!__"_

_BOOM!_

_BOOM!_

The force was increasing at a steady rate now. The pale mans lips quirked slightly. He was getting closer. His foot touched down on a swaying tree—

_BOOM!_

Gasping, he clutched his chest as the wave's sheer force crashed through his body, sending chills up his spine and banging his abnormally sharp teeth against each other. However, in his surprise, the moment to jump had passed. And so, Malaki found himself about to collide with the ground. He hissed, reaching forward and bending his elbows, effectively dispersing the force throughout his body, a far more favorable outcome when compared to the possibility of a broken arm.

He could heal, but that didn't mean it didn't hurt!

He stood up and prepared to jump when he thought of something. He didn't have to close, he could use a kido, fuck tree climbing.

He summoned his Hollow Zanpakuto and held it horizontally; this was arguably his favorite kido.

"Flames that arc the heavens, come down and sear their bones. Unleash your bellowing roar Raijin and bathe them in your raging thunder."

"Hado #32: **Ōkasen! (Yellow Fire Flash!)" ****He yelled.**

He watched with satisfaction as a row of trees were annihilated by the yellow wave of energy. He steeled himself, he needed to focus.

Malaki marched forward, not bothering to leap into the trees. He was close enough that speed was not a particularly important issue. At each shock-wave, the swordsman dug his feet firmly into the muddy ground, pausing till the next opportunity for movement showed itself.

The march was fairly uneventful, excusing the couple of falling trees and the frequent earthquakes. However, a "fairly uneventful march" did not cover the _destination_ of the march. Malaki's mouth fell open in shock at the sight.

Seeing it from a computer screen was _definitely _different then real life.

Two enormous humanoids stood in the clearing, teeth gnashing violently, each struggling against the other as their weapons clashed together. Their skin was dark and tanned, stretched taut over their generous frames.

"Hey!" He shouted.

Malaki waited impatiently for the answer.

"**Ya' gained weight, Brogy!"**

"**Like you haven't?"**

Malaki glared at the gigantic duo. '_There ignoring me.'_

"**GEGYAGYAGYAGYA . . . !"**

"**GEBABABABABABA. . . !**"

He raised his left hand.

"Hado #4: Byakurai." He whispered.

_BOOM!_

"**NANI!"**

The two monstrosities reeled backwards as the trees between them exploded in a flurry of flaming splinters.

"**What the-Dory!"**

One of the giants gripped the other by his cloak.

"**What did you do?!"**

The one called 'Dorry' growled angrily, slapping the other's hands off him. "**That wasn't me! I wouldn't eve' be so under-handed Brogy!"**

'Brogy' hissed. "**Well, ' sure a' hell wasn't me!"**

"**And I'm supposed to believe you?"**

"**Hai! It's the truth!"**

"I _said_ _**HEY**_!" Malaki shouted, his Hollowfied voice leaking into his own.

The two beings whirled around with wide eyes and barred teeth, ready to beat the intruder to a pulp. They had _not_ expected some tiny human wearing a cloak and bandages.

"N-Nani?!"

Malaki ignored there exclamation, "What are you doing?" The two giants bent down until they were mere feet away from him, and stared at him for a moment before simultaneously yelling.

"DUELING!"

The sheer force of the yell collided with his form, and without his hierro he was knocked unconscious.

The two looked at one another, wondering what the hell happened.

"Uhh…I'll take him over to my place till he wakes up…" Brogy trailed off awkwardly.

"Yeah…"

XxxxxX

Malaki let out a groan when he regained consciousness. The last thing he could remember was being crush under the roar of two giants, by all means, he should be dead. Instead, he found himself lying face up on a hard surface with a small source of warmth coming from somewhere to his right. Looking straight up and opening his dull steel eyes, he saw what looked to be the roof of a cave, a dark cave. Sitting up, he saw that he was indeed in a massive cave; the cave had numerous stalagmites and stalactites on the edges of the cave leaving the middle wide open. Suddenly, a shadow was cast over the cave and whipping his head around, he saw the giant from earlier, the one with a half-circled beard and huge nostrils.

"Your awake!" Two voices cried. Malaki turned his head and was meet with the forms of both Nami and Usopp.

"Yes…"

OH you're up?" A deep voice bellowed. Malaki scowled, not even looking in his direction.

Brogy frowned, "It was an accident, come on!"

Malaki did turn to him this time, but with a glare that could freeze hell itself.

"You two purposely got mere _feet_ from me, and yell so loud my bones shattered from the impact. The only reason I'm alive is my rapid regeneration and black blood." He spat venomously.

Brogy stared at Malaki for a moment before sighing, "Ok…just so you know, I'm sorry." Malaki sighed as well, but nodded nonetheless.

Brogy placed down a large piece of meat, which Malaki reluctantly began to eat.

Apparently, the giant was more than eager to talk about his home village, like the laws they made. First he told us was the law that to settle a fight, the opponents must leave the village and accept the judgment of their God named Elbaf. The God is said to grant divine protection unto the rightful victor and that being the right to live after the battle. He said that he started a feud, where he and another giant used the island as a battle ground.

''But it's been 100 years and we still haven't settled it! Yababababa!''

''I guess it's not a big news, since giant were said to live 3 time longer than humans'' There was another light bulb over my head and asked the giant my next question. ''Brogy, how long does it take for the Log Pose to set here?''

''About a year'' The giant replied plainly.

"A year?" We all replied in synch.

Suddenly there was a loud explosion coming from the islands volcano's mouth. Standing up, Brogy stated suddenly that he has to leave and that the volcano signals their 100-year long battle to start. Looking at Brogy Malaki noticed his eyes had those distant looks in them. Throwing his car sized dinosaur meat into the fire and getting his weapons ready, our giant walked of to meet the other giant.

He began to pick up the pace; it turned into a mad dash at the other giant and clashed their weapons at each other, their spirits doing the very same. The huge ripple of force washed through us in a huge wave. A true battle between warriors battle which ended in a draw. Now the two titans were drinking ail from the ship, joking and laughing heartily. At least until…

BOOM

The ail Dory drank subsequently exploded in his stomach. The giant's eyes rolled into the back of his head as he fell down.

Vivi and Luffy were fighting about who did it when they felt an evil aura. They turned and paled considerably.

Dory was on his knees, sword raised above his head. His figure was cast in a dark shadow and his eyes glowed an unearthly red.

"It was you…" He said gravely. "It wasn't Brogy. We are honorable warriors of Elbaf." He lowered his sword to stabilize himself. "The only ones to suspect… are you two."

At this point Karu was already gone, not too fond of being reduced to duck paste.

"We have to escape! He won't listen to anything we say!" Vivi exclaimed in worry.

"Running won't work." Luffy stated. He took his hat and handed it to Vivi, "Take this and hide."

Vivi stared at him with disbelief. "You can't mean…your going to fight him?

Luffy flexed his fists, "Sorry about this, Ossan."

Malaki was worried right now.

He had initially planned to let the normal set events play themselves out until he could get a chance to end the agents, but now…

…He sensed another spiritual being…

When he realized it was there he honestly wondered why he hadn't sensed it, but then he realized that the energy was either very low or very well suppressed, he hoped it was the latter.

He had already left Brogy and the others, he needed to find out who or what the energy belonged to _now_!

He was currently moving through the woods in a blur of Shunpo. He felt for the energy once more and was surprised to find the energy rapidly changing. It was _definitely _not suppressed anymore. He jumped over some bushes and his eyes widened at what he saw.

A short, child-like male with light-gray hair and maddened pupiless pink encompassed in a dark blue aura with three shrimp-like ethereal tails whipping angrily, a stitch-like scar running from under his left eye, all the way down his cheek. He wore a grey, sleeveless shirt, a short-sleeved mesh armor over which he also wears a green poncho along with a turquoise sash around his waist, paired with a green apron over his pants. He wears a pair of brown boots.

Most importantly however is that he was glaring at him.

"YOU!" He yelled. "I won't let _anyone_ control_ me!_" Malaki barely had time to summon his blades when the male pounced at him.

The deranged…whatever he was, flew towards him. To his gleeful surprise, a claw formed from the cloak reaching out towards Malaki.

Malaki seeing the claw heading his way pumped Reaitsu into both his Zanpakuto. A dark black flame emerged from the hilt and enveloped he blade. With a single slice of his sword, a wave black flame flew towards the chakra claw.

The two attacks hit and for a few seconds, the two techniques battled it out, each struggling for dominance.

But to Malaki's dismay, the claw emerged victorious as it barely tore through the burning wave of offending energy. As the demonic hand reached nearer and nearer,

Malaki with all his strength slashed apart the demonic claw and stopped when it began to _sear_ his skin. He leaped back, that attack really took a good amount out of him. He wasn't a energy power house, and the days earlier injuries weren't helping. No, even he had limits. The demonic male for some reason was still standing in the same spot he pounced at.

He had a limited amount of options. Kido might work, but from what he has seen, he-it would just overpower any technique he threw. Close combat was out of the question.

The only real answer was a cero, or something stronger than what he had. Maybe coming here was a bad idea…

As the male stared at his hands, marveling in the extreme surge of power, Malaki was thinking about what the hell to do. A minute past, and for some Goddamnned reason, the guy was still fucking looking at himself. Malaki had also come up with a plan, although it would prove incredibly stupid.

"This is perfect..." The male said. In his head though, things were in disarray. He had just been released from the control of some red-eyed bastard and that had damaged his psyche a good bit. On top of that he was summoning his demons power, further addling his mind until he basically lost it.

He glared at Malaki with a blue fire in his eyes before reappearing a nearly 30 meters infront of him. Malaki's eyes widened as black and white energy began infront of his mouth and formed into a small ball…which he then ate?

Normally Malaki would have attacked, but he could feel the absolutely _massive_ energy in said ball. No amount of running would matter, and he was too tired to use Shunpo anymore. The offender's body bloated like a balloon before releasing a black ball of energy spiraling at him.

'No… No! DAMN IT NO! I can't die here, I have to protect everyone!'

Malaki's depressing thoughts stopped here. This is where things get weird (or as weird as it can get in Malaki's life). Time froze. The balls movements stopped just with it a few feet from Malaki. Things lost their color. The world Malaki saw was a world of black and white. "What the hell?"

"It's best if I reveal myself." a voice said as a distinctly female figure manifested in front of Malaki.

"Who are you?" Malaki demanded, despite the fact he's in no condition to do so.

The figure sighed, "You'd think someone would recognize a part of their soul."

"Your-" but was cut off by the voice.

"You're Zanpakuto? Then yes. It seems that you were correct about us reaching you when you met our requirements." The female voice said.

"What was the requirement anyways?" Malaki asked, seriously questioning his own sanity.

"A reason to fight. You've never actually needed this power until now." answered the female.

"Alright then, what happens when I go back? I'd prefer to know what I'm doing." Malaki stated, the female spirit smiled at his apparent ease.

"When you return to the real world, you can call me to you. Everything will come to you instinctively. How to wield me and how to use my basic abilities. We'll go into more details later when you're not going to die. So for now, CALL MY NAME AND SUMMON MY POWER!" She yelled showing a bit of anger at the end as she faded away.

Malaki's eyes narrowed in determination, "Feed the insatiable hunger!"

Time continued on, and the colors returned. The orb of energy began resuming its pace towards Malaki.

"Mokushiryu! **(Apocalypse Dragon!)**"

His blades reduced to black and white flames and collided with one another. Malaki reached forward and grabbed the very bottom as the energy condensed. At the same time the ball of energy reached its target and detonated with deadly power, but to the demon-like males surprise there was no explosion, a lot of smoke and dust yes, but no boom.

His eyes widened when the smoke dissipated, revealing Malaki and his new _weapon_…

His attire after his Shikai release per the only change made to his clothing. Gray bandages wrapped around his neck down to his waist with the exception of his hands, which were covered by fingerless black silk gloves with a crimson rose and the back. A black, tattered cape with a high collar and rectangular silver armored plates on the shoulders, he lacked any footwear. In his hands, was a midnight black, _five_-foot long, _one_-foot wide _buster sword_ with a glowing red edge that radiated hunger, the hilt had gray bandages with red flower designs.

He could only marvel as his attack was begin _absorbed_ into the glowing blade. Malaki was doing the same; the flood of energy was amazing. He felt as strong as-no, he felt _better_ than before!

His gaze lingered on his opponent's figure, which looked visibly shaken by his power, and narrowed his eyes.

"What is your name?" Malaki asked. The demonic figure raised an eyebrow despite his own lunacy. "I will not kill a worthy opponent without knowing his name." The gray haired male grinned psychotically.

"**Yagura**…" he trailed off.

"What are you?" Yagura only chuckled darkly.

"**Jinchuriki no Sanbi** (Container of the Three Tails)** and former slave to Madara Uchiha**."

Malaki nodded although he had no idea what a "Jinchuriki" was. "Now you must die." Was all he said

Yagura opened his mouth to retort, but was cut off when he felt a sharp pain in his stomach as something impaled him onto a tree. His eyes widened when he saw the massive sword sticking through his chest. His gaze lingered to the wrappings around the swords hilt that seemed to have connected to Malaki's bandages a few dozen feet away.

His eyes only widened further when he felt his power being sucked out of him like a juice box, even the demon inside of him was crying in fear as its power was absorbed into the sinister sword. They both could only cry in agony as there souls faded away, no longer having the power to sustain them.

Malaki was currently on the ground, moaning in pain.

When he through Mokushiryu at Yagura he immediately felt a flow of power entering him, but what he _hadn't_ prepared for was the energy of an entirely different being. The energy he was absorbing from it literally burned like lemon juice in an open wound.

"_Been awhile hasn't it partner!"_ Igualda yelled within the reaches of his mind.

"Im busy right now'

"_That's why I'm here! If you let me take the energy myself, your body wont turn into paste from an energy overload!_ He yelled.

'Fine! Just take the damn stuff!'

"_With pleasure…"_ Igualda said with a somewhat sinister chuckle. Malaki sighed with relief when he felt the energy being rerouted towards his hollow. Whatever Yagura was using, it was definitely not spiritual energy.

He shakily stood up and looked at his new sword. The body that it had previously impaled was ashen gray with death. He made a jerking motion with his hand, and winced at the audible "SQUELCH" of flesh and bone as the blade returned to his grip. He looked himself over. All in all, he looked better then before, though he didn't like the fact that he _still_ wasn't wearing a shirt.

He walked over to the Yagura's corpse and began digging a hole next to him. When he finished he looked over Yagura's corpse and spotted a necklace. He pulled off of his neck before laying his body in the hole and burying him. He grabbed two sticks from the foliage and used the necklace as rope to tie the pieces together into a makeshift cross. He looked at the grave for a moment before bowing and walking away.

He was cold, not evil. He would respect those that deserved it, even in death.

Malaki looked around, he couldn't help the feeling he'd forgotten something. That's why his eyes nearly popped out of his head when he saw a massive candle shaped structure spinning.

He quickly disappeared of in the familiar blur of Shunpo.

XxxxxX

Inside of Malaki's mindscape, one could hear the laughter of, quite possibly, the happiest hollow alive.

"_AHAHAHAHAHA! I love you partner! I FUCKING LOVE YOU!"_ Igualda yelled with a gleeful cackle.

Why was he happy?

Well, he had just reached Vasto Lorde

To understand why this is important, you must understand hollows evolutionary stages.

A hollow goes through a maximum of three stages in its lifetime. When a number of souls are consumed, they begin to melt and mesh into one massive cloaked form, they are called Menos. They consume more souls in an effort to evolve and gain more power; they do this because of the hunger caused by the hole in their chest. Each an every hollow has a unique mask, abilities, and evolutionary stages. When a Menos forms, thousands of minds are fighting for dominance, if no one wins they become blank and mindless, but if they do win, there minds remain intact and they begin to consume other Menos. When a Menos consumes enough souls it becomes an Adjuchas, and gains a smaller, but more powerful, form. These hollows often gather by the desire to consume each other and evolve to the next level. Adjuchas must constantly consume hollows; they will regress and permanently lose their individuality. When an Adjuchas evolves, a process that takes years because of the sheer number of souls required, it becomes a Vasto Lorde. Vasto Lorde have small, remarkably human features, but they also have enough power to kill others with their presence alone, it is also the final stage of evolution.

When Igualda made the offer to absorb the power overloading Malaki, he used the sword as a medium to absorb the victim's souls as well. When the demonic soul entered his body, the level of power it contained was not only great, but it _mutated_ his power, multiplying it many times over. The energy is the reason souls are consumed, the soul generates power, so when it's absorbed they add it to their own. So when Igualda absorbed a soul that generated Vasto Lorde power on its own, he was forcibly evolved into one.

Now that you understand, you have to realize, Malaki's body isn't stable enough for his power. Thankfully, the black blood that Igualda intends to use in his next transformation would not only strengthen his body, but it would drastically _increase_ Malaki's, already massive, physical and spiritual power.

So yes, he was very happy.

If one looked past the pale white laughter, they would notice the feminine figure shaking its head at the hollows antics.

XxxxxX

Malaki was currently in the bushes, watching as small specks of wax slowly turned Zoro, Nami, Brogy, and Vivi into wax figures. He was waiting for his captain's arrival so he could release them. Nami was panicking about turning into a statue. Four people stood across from them grinning.

The first, Mr. 3, had neatly combed hair in the style of a 3. He wears a blue vest with white stripes, a white topknot with a red bow on it, and narrow blue-tinted glasses. His stance was haughty and absurdly arrogant.

The second, Mrs. Goldenweek was a young girl with a relatively emotionless face, and blushed cheeks, and has auburn hair tied in braided pigtails. She wore consists of a pink hat, a dark blue t-shirt with the word "Golden" written on it in orange, a sky blue shirt with a cloud pattern over it, a maroon-colored skirt, and blue-striped stockings covering her legs. She held a paint set in her hands along with a brush.

The third, Mr. 5, was a dark-skinned male with spiked black dread and a lazy posture. HE wore a pair of red glasses, a high collar red jacket with a 5 imprinted in white on the left breast, and a red scarf wrapped around his neck.

And lastly, Mrs. Valentine, was a short woman with a perpetual smile on her face. She has a yellow hat with orange trimmings, as well as a yellow dress with a lemon shaped pattern, lemon earrings, a white high-heeled shoes, and a blue jacket with white stripes. She had a bright green umbrella over her shoulder with blue stripes.

"I can't move my hands! I don't want to die like this!" She cried. "Can't we do something?"

Zorro looked over to the half waxed giant, "Oi, Ossan?" he pulled out his katana's. "Feel like killing these guys with me?" He said with a smirk. Nami and Vivi looked gasped in disbelief.

Brogy couldn't help his grin in enthusiasm. "With a spirit like that, how could I refuse?"

Mr. 3 tensed at the remark, "Don't even try it! Just what do you think you can do!?" The flame atop the three on his head flared a little.

He was cut off when they heard a rumbling, he turned just in time to see a large duck, a long-nosed man, and a lanky boy, go flying right past him into the nearby woods.

"IM GONNA KICK YOUR ASS!" One of them cried.

Mr. 5 and Mr. 3 could only stare in confusion. "Nani?" Mr. 3 said.

Luffy walked out of the smoke, followed by Usopp on Karu's back.

Luffy cracked his knuckles, "They ruined ossan's duel!"

Usopp's goggles were down over his eyes. "Master Brogy! Were here to avenge your suffering!"

"Usopp…" Brogy trailed off.

"Before that, Luffy…" Zoro said. "Mind breaking this pillar first, I'll leave the rest to you."

Luffy grinned, "Gotcha."

Mr. 3 scoffed, "I think not."

Malaki was wondering what he should do, he could destroy the pillar, but he couldn't use higher level kido yet.

_**"**_**_Oi! Partner! Here's an idea, dumbass! How about you counter with your own cero?"_**

'_What the-? You said I couldn't!'_

_**"**_**_That doesn't matter now, you dumb bastard! Just do as I say!" _**Igualda commanded. He just didn't want to admit to his obstruction of the attack on purpose. He was too happy with his recent development to obstruct his partners learning now.

Malaki brought his free hand forward and held his hand out in the pillar's direction quickly. He gathered as much of his Hollow's Reaitsu as he could in his hand and, following his Hollow's instructions, compressed it to the best of his ability and fired it at the wax pillar. The bright red Cero hit the pillar, and effectively destroyed it. The remains flew off into the nearby woods.

The spectators eyes widened and their jaws dropped in surprise, except Luffy, who was practically frothing of the mouth.

"So cool! I've never seen something like that!" The rubber boy yelled in awe.

"NANI!" The others cried.

Malaki Shunpo'd behind Zoro and tapped him on the shoulder. Zoro jumped at the touch and turned to glare at Malaki when he noticed his sword.

"Where'd you get that?" Malaki shrugged.

"It doesn't matter right now. Stay still so I can get you out." He said. Zoro nodded, and Malaki placed the red end inches away from Zoro's foot. "This might hurt a little." Zoro didn't get the chance to respond when Malaki started _chopping_ away at the wax till both of his feet were free.

Zoro glared at Malaki angrily, "_That _was your _plan!_" He spat venomously.

Malaki didn't get a chance to respond when he was suddenly hit by an explosive booger, sending him into the remains of the pillar and Zoro flew towards Luffy. Nami and Vivi were lucky enough to survive the attack, and although they were still stuck in the wax, it was melting because of the heat of the blast.

Malaki stood up and grip his buster sword so tight his knuckles audibly cracked; thankfully his Hierro had saved him from the blast. He cast a dark glare on the nonchalant figure of Mr.5, that man was _dead_.

Mr. 5's eyes widened behind his glasses when Malaki _disappeared_ into thin air. He quickly pulled out his pistols; this was the guy that was responsible for the _massacre _on Whiskey Peak.

Mr. 5 rolled to the side on instinct alone, narrowly missing the massive sword by mere inches. He was a little thrown off at the feeling of _hunger_ the sword gave off in waves; it felt like it wanted to eat him.

Malaki leaped at him to strike again, but a sudden weight slammed into his back, forcing him into the ground, his sword fell out of his grip. He looked over his shoulder and saw Mrs. Valentine on his back grinning. He glared at her, but stopped when the weight suddenly increased, causing him to cry in pain.

Mrs. Valentine smirked, "Mrs. Goldenweek, can you paint him while I hold him down?"

Mrs. Goldenweek stared at her blankly and nodded, and put away her cookie. Malaki tried to get from under Mrs. Valentine, but he couldn't Shunpo with this wait on his back. He flailed about angrily until Mrs. Valentine placed a hand on his head, forcing it into the ground.

He felt something wet on his head and he suddenly felt an unexplainable sadness run through him.

"It's done. He won't do anything positive." The girl said before going back to her precious cookie as she walked away.

"You know…" they froze when they heard his voice. "Madness comes from solely negative emotions…" They slowly turned around and there eyes widened when they saw his face splitting grin.

As he stood up a red aura surrounded him, evaporating the paint, and it grew into a translucent red sphere with three black eyes and a large hole just beneath it. He raised a hand and his bandages shot out towards his Buster sword, connecting to the wrappings on it, and returning to its rightful owner.

He adopted a thoughtful posture, "What to do, what t-AAAAHHHH!" His grin dropped suddenly as he fell to his knees in pain. The aura faded as Malaki calmed himself down.

He gripped his head as he stood up again. He didn't mean to lose control again, but all the negative emotion was too much for him to stop all at once, but once the paint was removed he was back in control.

He looked around and saw the others staring at him. Luffy and the others were fighting some sort of wax robot. Wait…why the hell was he taking on _three_ members at once?

He stared at them for a second before he Shunpo'd behind Mrs. Goldenweek. She didn't even have a chance to scream when Malaki cut her in half vertically. He felt the power her soul provided, and couldn't help but grin, so Devil Fruit users had more energy than regular people?

Mr. 5 eyes widened in fear as he raised his pistol to fire, Malaki saw this and raised his own hand and began to charge a cero. They fired their attacks simultaneously, but the cero's range and power met the explosive bullet, and the two attacks destroyed one another, covering the field in smoke.

What Mr. 5 failed to notice was the figure moving right behind the cero. He cried in pain when he felt a sudden weightlessness, and fell down. His eyes widened in horror when he saw his _still standing_ legs drop in the other direction. He looked up and the last thing he saw was the glowing red Buster sword before darkness claimed him.

Mrs. Goldenweek had barely even moved. Her eyes were wide with fear and tears rolled down her blushed cheeks. She may be a member of Baroque Works, but she wasn't a killer, neither was Mr. 3. They always incapacitated their foes using wax cuffs and her paint. She didn't _want_ to kill anyone; she was first and foremost a _child_.

Malaki Shunpo'd in front of her; she stumbled back in fear and landed on her but. She cold only look in fear as the blood stained black sword glinted in sunlight as he raised it for the finishing blow. She closed her eyes, curled up into a ball and cried even harder.

Malaki raised his sword to end Mrs. Goldenweek, but stopped when he heard her sobs. His eyes widened at the balled up _child_ in front of him, he dropped his sword, which immediately sealed itself, in horror.

He was about to kill a _child._

He dropped to his knees and let tears roll down his cheek in enveloped the girl in a hug. Why was he such a _monster_? He looked down at the child, he felt self-disgust well up in his chest, she was no older than _12_!

Mrs. Goldenweek was confused.

She thought she was going to die, but instead of a sword in the head she was…hugged?

Wait what?

She opened her eyes when she felt warm droplets on her cheek that weren't _hers_. They promptly widened when she saw _him_ crying. She had no idea what was happening right now…

"I'm sorry, I'm so sorry…" was the mantra he whispered into her ear. She stared at him confusedly…so she wasn't going to die?

"You aren't going to kill me?" she whispered. His grip on her only tightened and she found herself liking it and she hesitantly returned the hug.

"I'm s-so sorry, I promise I'll never hurt you…just please forgive me…" He murmured.

She didn't know why, but she wasn't afraid of him anymore. He sounded so broken that she couldn't help but feel bad for him.

"I forgive you…" His grip grew more protective of her as more tears rolled down his cheeks.

"Thank you…"

They stayed like this for a moment until Mrs. Goldenweek fell asleep. He looked her over and sighed, what was he going to do? It's not like…

He smiled softly and pulled the girl deeper into his chest as he stood up. He looked around and noticed that everyone, except Luffy and Sanji were all standing in front of the two giants, while Brogy was literally causing rain with his tears.

Malaki frowned, they didn't even notice him?

He noticed Dory using his sword to pull himself up, and when Brogy noticed his eyes almost shot out of his head.

"Dory…You…how?" Brogy said at a loss for words.

Dory looked down a little, "I guess I was unconscious…It was probably because of your weapon." He concluded. At this point Malaki was right behind the others, though, they haven't noticed him, not they he particularly cared. The child in his arms was easily more important.

Usopp wiped his pencil shaped nose, "Weapon…? Of course!" he went on to explain how the weapons inability to cut after a hundred years of combat. Brogy laughed happily as he pulled Dory into a cheerful hug.

"Oi, Brogy. You're hurting my wound." Dory complained, but Brogy paid it no heed.

"I'm so glad you're alive, my dear friend." He laughed as he cried and dory did the same.

Malaki smiled slightly at the sight before he turned around and began to make his way back to the ship. He froze when he felt a pair of stubby arms try to wrap around his chest, but relaxed when he realized who it was. He unconsciously began rubbing circles around Mrs. Goldenweek's back.

"I love you Tou-chan." Mrs. Goldenweek murmured. Malaki's eyes comically widened in disbelief, did she just…A small smile crossed his face as he continued toward the ship.

Over with Luffy and the gang, Sanji had just showed them the eternal pose to Arabasta and were getting ready to go to the ship

Vivi seemed concerned about something; Nami noticed her worried look and decided to investigate.

"What's wrong?" Nami asked, putting a hand on Vivi's shoulder.

Vivi jolted at the contact, "Do you see Malaki or Sanji anywhere?"

Nami frowned, "Now that you mention it...I haven't seen him since the fight."

"You don't thin-"

"Oi, Malaki! Who are you cuddling with?!" Luffy yelled. The others snapped their heads to Luffy and followed his gaze, and there jaws dropped in shock.

A few meters ahead of them was Malaki with a genuine smile on his face, but that wasn't the weird part…

…The weird part was the cute _child_ whose arms were wrapped cutely around his chest.

Nami and Vivi were sharing the same thoughts

'Kawaii!'

Malaki stared at his captain for a moment. "This is Mrs. Goldenweek, and I've decided to take her in as my own. I hope there won't be any…_problems_" he said with a dangerous edge. The others looked at him with wide eyes, except Luffy who just grinned.

"Okay!"

We continued in awkward silence, well Luffy _did_ talk a lot, but no one really listened. Malaki walked up the railing with a sigh as he listened to the giants make a speech about honor and the like. He grimaced when he realized what was coming next. He quickly moved to the mast and climbed up the, holding Mrs. Goldenweek protectively all the way.

When they reached the top, he could feel the water beginning to rumble and grow at one point.

"Holy-LOOK AT THAT!" Nami screeched in terror as the _largest_ goldfish in all history burst out of the water. Malaki doubted the Empire State Building held a candle to the giant red and white goldfish opened its mouth, revealing its rounded row of teeth.

Below him he could hear the crews murmurs of excitement and fear, but his musings were cut off by a violent shiver. It took a moment to realize it wasn't _his_. A small smile graced his face as he unfastened his cape and lightly wrapped it around her.

He suppressed a scoff when he heard his captain say go straight forward, in reality they would be eaten or crushed by giant ass teeth. Then again, this wasn't _his_ world; logic only worked five percent of the time. As the ship neared the monstrosity, one could hear its surprisingly calming heartbeat.

He gripped the girl in his arms a little tighter when he saw two massive arcs of red and blue energy coming from the island. The sudden bright light of the sky shined through the gaping hole in the underwater creatures flesh, and the burst of power made by the hole basically sent the ship flying out.

The feeling of weightlessness was truly amazing, and he offhandedly wondered if he should wake Mrs. Goldenweek up to see, but quickly decided against it. The ship landed in the sea with a rough crash and the others were shrieking in fear, much to his annoyance.

He felt the child in his arms stir a little, he lightly rubbed circles around her back and she snuggled into his cape as her snoring regained its rhythm.

He felt something swell in his chest, but it wasn't sadness or guilt. If anything it felt rather good, he smiled as he let it envelope his being. He could feel the madness in his system calm from its usual rebellious feel.

He looked towards the sunrise with an uncharacteristically large, and genuine, smile. He had something to protect again...

XxxxxX

Thanks for reading the latest chapter guys! I got the idea for Yagura and Mrs. Golden week from anonymous readers, so thanks whoever you are! I easily agreed with the Mrs. Goldenweek twist simply because I felt so much pity for my own character; suffice to say I'm trying to heal his wounds through family bonds. This is also a warning, Mrs. Goldenweeks past aint exactly pretty. See ya next time!


	13. Chapter 13: Revelation and Determination

Ok so people have been asking me if Mrs. Goldenweek is a love interest. ARE YOU FUCKING RETARDED?! MALAKI IS NOT A LOLICON, OR A FUCKING MOLESTER! JESUS MAN! On with the story while I HUNT PEDO BEAR ASS!

**Disclaimer: I obviously don't own One Piece**

Revelation And Determination

XxxxxX

Malaki was lying on the railing of the crow's nest, left arm stretched up to the railing. His face was missing his usual critical look while he slept, giving him a peaceful appearance. On his chest with Malaki's right arm wrapped around her, Mrs. Goldenweek was sleeping, her right hand gripping softly onto the bandages onhis chest while her left hand was curled into a fist around the cape Malaki had wrapped around her, her hat lay against his left thigh. As she was sleeping, she would occasionally nuzzle her face into Malaki's torso.

The cuteness was so great; it could warm a demons heart.

A very different story was going on in the mind of one Seras D Malaki…

XxxxxX

Inside of Malaki's soul, three shadowed figures fought, or more specifically two shadowed figures and a painfully pale white one. Each with such speed and strength, that they registered as mere blurs to any spectators.

Malaki was truly regretting releasing his Shikai.

His Zanpakuto was a disturbing mixture of sadistic, kind, and serious.

In other words, Mokishiryu and Igualda were the best of friends…

…And he was their favorite toy…

…SHIT!

He remembered when he met them only hours ago…

[Flashback Begin]

Malaki had just arrived in his mindscape after falling asleep with Mrs. Goldenweek in his arms and began walking through his new and arguably improved mindscape.

Multiple trees, in different array of colors, were lush with life that had not been their in days of past. The skies that once swirled with cold storm had withered away revealing the soft glow of the sun.

There was however some…_stranger_ parts…

The grass was a sickly _black_ with a green tint that grew into small blades. The blackened seas raged erratically than immediately calmed for some minutes before raging once more.

Yes, a very strange change…

He stopped mid pace when he felt to auras approaching him. One was familiar, a darkness with sharpened edges that flared about. The other, presumably his Zanpakuto, was _unnerving_…

It would best be described as an abyss that seemingly _pulled_ you towards it as it attempts to fill the unending void.

He turned around as the two auras neared and was face to face with the other pieces of his soul.

Igualda himself hadn't changed at all, his sword however was an exact copy of his own, except the black body was white, but the red edge stayed the same. A river of blood flowed out his nostrils like a river, and despite his paleness, Malaki could see he was losing an unhealthy amount of blood. He wondered why he was in such a condition. The question was answered by the female next to him, who was stunning in her own right.

She had long black hair that was tied into a ponytail and a bang that mostly covered her left eye. From what he could see, her eyes were midnight black and had slitted white pupils that radiated nothing but elation. She wore a purple kimono with black roses adorning it as if they were falling. The kimono held tightly against her body, emphasizing her C cup breast and hourglass figure. She too held a sword in her hands, but unlike Igualda, it was a perfect copy of his buster sword.

Malaki suppressed his nosebleed through sheer force of will.

"It's nice to meet finally meet you Malaki." She said with a small smile.

Malaki smiled in return, "Mokishiryu, I presume?" he asked.

Her smile widened at the sound of her namebefore performed a sarcastic bow. "The one an only."

"So, what exactly are we gonna do now?" He asked curiously.

"You'll learn how to properly wield me, of course."

Malaki raised an eyebrow, "Will you teach me your abilities?"

She grinned, "Of course." He smiled at the prospect, "But, you have to learn it my way."

Malaki stared at her confusedly, "And how might that be?"

Igualda spoke this time with a grin that his Zanpakuto shared. "Through _training_ of course!" He yelled excitedly as the two raised there massive swords.

Malaki turned so pale that he could've been mistaken for his hollow.

[Flashback End]

And as Igualda had said, he _did_ learn from training, even if it was more or less a two on one beat down.

He learned that Mokishiryu was essentially a vampire type Zanpakuto. Small cuts could absorb energy and larger ones absorbed even more. The wrappings on the hilt could connect to the bandages on his arms and be thrown like a spear; he learned that from his _partner_.

He had also worked on his Cero and Bala, which for some reason still didn't work. Igualda told him that he had his own cero, but it was to much for him to handle until the second phase of his transformation. He did, however perfect his control over his current Cero so it no longer wasted as much energy.

Normally he would be disappointed by the less than stellar progress, but when one consider its only been a few hours, it seemed vastly better.

Malaki raised his sword as Igualda slashed at him in rapid succession, and Shunpo'd when Mokishiryu appeared behind him, accidentally slashing Igualda across the chest.

"Argh…Damnit! That's like the tenth time you've done that!" Igualda cried in outrage.

Malaki sighed as he began to charge a Cero. Despite their individual skills, when it came to teamwork they hurt each other more than they hurt him, and he got hurt a lot…

Shaking the shot from his head, he launched the red beam into an irate Igualda, sending him into the trees with a loud bang. Mokishiryu appeared in front of him, ready to strike when they all froze.

Malaki sighed before he faded away, ignoring Igualda's vows of vengeance.

XxxxxX

Mrs. Goldenweek was a strange child.

This was a fact. When someone lived her life, very few remained relatively the same. Her name, her _real_ name, was Cynthia Luceros, Daughter of Amanda and John Luceros, owner of Luceros Trading Company. The only one who knew her name was Mr. 3, but that's because he was the one that recruited her as his partner.

Her family lived on a small island, a closed community, as nobles among the inhabitants. Her father was a cruel man, arrogance and superiority flowed off him in waves. He treated his wife poorly simply because she was female; in fact he treated many this way. Her mother had been a simple maid in his overly stocked mansion when he decided that she belonged to him. She was given no choice; her family had given her up to him, to engross with the money he had paid them to care. John wanted a son, an heir to his greatness. So when she conceived, he had never been happier. Amanda however, could not have been any worse.

Her life had been taken away from her. She was forced into the bed of a monster, and now carried his child. Despite the father of the child, she would love it nonetheless. But alas, she knew that once the child was born John would likely corrupt its mind with his evil. When the baby was born, thing took a turn for the worst.

The child, the son John dreamed of, was in fact a girl…

Needless to say he was angry, but despite his anger, he knew he could try again. So accepted the girl, which Amanda had named Cynthia, not that he cared. His views on women had not changed a bit. Yes, she was his daughter, but she would never be the heir to his greatness, she would always be second-rate in his eyes.

A year later he impregnated Amanda once more. At this time, a one year old Cynthia had taken an interest in painting. She was an unusual child, calm and collected, she held a strong interest in painting. Despite her age, she was very talented, though she was only supported by her mother in this endeavor.

When Amanda gave birth, John finally got what he wanted, a son.

Shortly after giving birth, Amanda died from the stress. John cared little; her part had already been played. Cynthia was ignorant, she didn't know of her mother's death until a year later. When she finally found out she only dove deeper into her art, which had surpassed many on the island.

This is what molded her into who she was.

Her father was cold and abusive towards her, always favoring her brother over her. This fueled her passion for art over the years, which had become nothing short of masterpieces. At the age of nine, her art stunned others with its beauty and the sheer emotion it conveyed.

When she turned eight, her life finally had enough. Her father was a bastard and her brother was no better. She packed the bare essential, and held her favorite brush in her hands, and ran away.

She only made it to the door when her father caught her. He cursed her and belittled her until she snapped, dipped her paintbrush in blue paint before throwing it at him, hitting him square on the forehead. She had expected to be beaten; the results however were very different…

When she looked down at him, her eyes widened when she saw him on the ground _sulking_ for absolutely no reason. Not dwelling on the thought, she grabbed the brush and ran to the nearest port.

When she reached the port, she snuck into a small passenger vessel as a stowaway. About three days into the voyage she grew hungry and, without prior planning, snuck into a cabin. She hadn't realized that she broke into the room of an infamous bounty hunter Mr. 3.

Before she knew what was happening, she was being restrained by white globs of wax! She tried to break free, but found her attempts useless. When she saw a where the source of the fluid came from, her haw almost dropped when she saw it shooting out of the fingers of a person! The said man was strange, his hair was in the shape of a three, but despite his appearance, she could tell he was dangerous. So when he began asking questions, she answered them to the best of her ability.

Mr. 3 was interested. He was having difficulties finding a suitable partner because all of the ones he had tried so far were ignorant fools. He was a man of strategy, not of action! Now he was dealing with some snot-nosed brat! But as he questioned her further, he was amazed at how collected an _eight_ year old child was compared to many adults.

He interrogated her for the better part of an hour until he learned of what happened with her father. A child incapacitated a grown man with a paint brush? It was very curious, so he had her test it on one of the crewmates. Imagine his surprise when the cabin boy was reduced to tears by nothing more than a blue dot of paint. Could she have a Devil Fruit?

This theory was sunken literally when he submerged her in seawater. After a little thought an idea struck him, hypnotic suggestion! The paint was using hypnotic suggestion to render the victim immobile. The blue paint she used obviously increased the depression of whoever it touched, so he had her try it with other colors. As he had assumed, other colors like red and green inspired anger and envy. Now that he knew, the question was, what now?

Sure she was skilled, but was she truly capable? Yes, he decided she was, with that thought he took her with him... She would become Mrs. goldenweek, and agent of Baroque Works...

Thats about it...

She looked up at the reptilian male and sighed...

Why did she like him so much?

He had mercilessly killed her comrades and nearly killed her. On the other hand, he didn't kill her, but rather, he held her tightly with care she didn't know was possible and begged for forgiveness. She had forgiven him because she was so shocked, so utterly thrown off, that she didn't know how to respond.

He showed her passion, something her life seriously lacked. Mr. 3 and the other numbers, with the exception of Mr. 2, just plain ignored unless they were on a mission. Malaki, she believed his name was, held her like she was a fragile thing, not some nuisance, like a piece of glass. She felt her chest constrict with fierce emotion as she reminisced the event, though she had yet to identify it. Her eyes lingered to the chain around his neck.

The chain itself was fleshy red, at the end was a perfect copy of Malaki's Buster sword, it's edge held an almost unnoticeable crimson glow. She shifted uncomfortably at its sight.

It felt alive, like it wanted to eat anything it came into contact with. She had seen what it was capable of, the sheer power it held in the hands of its wielder. It was strange, his face held such passion and affection when he held her, but before his eyes were cold and twisted. Then there was that red aura.

She remembered how the paint had triggered some kind of psychotic reaction. That red aura felt so twisted, so wrong, that she thought she would lose her mind by just being near it. She would have to ask what that was later...

She was cut from the line of thought as she felt Malaki shift beneath her. She looked up into his gray eyes, an she couldn't suppress the smile that made its way on her face. His eyes, though somewhat animalistic, held affection that made her heart leap.

"Are you cold?" He asked quietly. She shook her head and nuzzled her head deeper into his chest, much to his shock.

Malaki's thoughts were running a mile a minute. Had she forgiven him? Or had she not even realized what she was doing?

"Do you hate me?" He whispered.

Mrs. goldenweek looked up at him and he suppressed a gasp at the kindness nearly _radiating_ from her eyes.

In her eyes he was so different now. She remembered the first time she'd seen him—his bleak, half-crazed eyes, haunting and haunted. The way he'd seemed to look at her without really seeing her, as if she and everyone else in the world were just a shifting mass of shadows and bad dreams. The way he'd cut down the other numbers, slashed through them without even flinching, without ever losing that glazed, detached look. He'd been a killer, consumed with darkness.

But this gentleness had been there all along, under the surface. Maybe he'd just been waiting for someone to touch him, to penetrate his darkness.

"No..." She saw said with a small smile. Malaki looked at her with disbelief and... hope?

"I killed your friends. I nearly killed _you_."

The girl flinched, but the smile remained. "They weren't my friends, they ignored me because I was a child." She said bitterly. A question popped in Malaki's head.

"How old _are_ you?"

"Ten..." She trailed off awkwardly.

"They let a ten-year old girl into an army of bounty hunters?" She nodded absently. The two just stared at one another for a moment Before Malaki spoke.

"So...you wanna tell me about yourself?" He tried not to sound pushy. It was hard not to when you didn't know the _name_ of the person wearing your own cape.

Mrs. goldenweek stared at him with such intensity, he felt like she was searching his soul. After a few moments she told him everything.

_Everything_...

By the time she finished telling him he was trembling with rage, his claws clenched so tightly that there were finger shaped holes in the floor beneath them.

"How.." Mrs. Gol...err...Cynthia looked up at him worriedly. "How could a father treat their daughter in such a way. It's... its _disgusting_, so is utterly _filthy_! To treat a child so horribly, if you had been mine..." He stopped himself when he saw Cynthia's wide, tearful eyes. Her arms wrapped around his form as far as they could as she sobbed into his chest.

Malaki panicked, "I-I didn't mean it! Dont cry!" He exclaimed frantically. Cynthia looked up at him with red eyes.

"If you had been mine..." She restated, her voice trembled with an unkown emotion. "Did you mean that?" Her eyes bore into him. He stared at her for a moment before responding.

"Yes..." He sighed in resignation. he believed she would hate him now, he ruined it _right_ after she said she said she didn't hate him.

"What if I was your daughter?" Malaki looked at her with wide eyes. What was she implying...

"I would love you. I have lived my life alone, my family was murdered in front of me because of my stupidity. The girl I loved and the one I saw as a brother drowned. To know a father acts so cruelly _infuriates_ me. He should be adoring you, your skills are unique, your art rivaled even the greatest of painters. I would support you in every way, give you the compassion you not only need, but deserve."

She stared at him with something resembling resolution.

"Could you be my father?" The moment the words left her mouth she closed her eyes, believing she already knew the answer.

Malaki was to stunned to speak.

She wanted him to be her father? Him, the man who nearly killed her? He felt he should say no, he was unworthy of such an honor, but he realized had essentially put her heart on a platter and served it to him, denying her would be the equivalent of throwing it on the ground. Besides, as unworthy as he felt, he wanted to be a father badly. Like he said earlier, his life was lonely. He had always wanted to be a father, even when he was cold, he longed to carry a child in his arms. With that thought in mind he had decided...

"Only if you'll let me."

Her eyes snapped open in shock. He said yes? She felt a warm feeling constrict her chest as she hugged him and sobbed so hard Malaki was afraid his bandages would fall apart. Malaki wrapped an arm around the girl and smiled widely, revealing his sharpened teeth.

He hadn't felt this good since... well... _ever_..

"Oi! Bandages, its time to eat!"

And... now it's gone...

Cynthia calmed down as she stood up, using his cape as a towel to wipe away the tears, much to his ire. He took the cape and pumped a little spiritual energy into his clothing and smiled when the tear stains disappeared. He placed the cape on his back and tied the silver string into a knot. He looked at his daughter and smiled softly As he placed a chandler on her shoulder.

"You should hold your breath." She did it without question and suppressed a gasp when the world round them blurred, suddenly they were under the deck.

She let out a choked cough as she shakily regained her senses. It made Malaki feel a bit guilty.

"You alright?" She nodded as she took a slow step forward, testing her balance before Malaki led her to the others.

When they entered the room everyone stared at them, or more specifically, Cynthia. She fidgeted uncomfortably under their stares, she quietly hid behind Malaki's leg.

Malaki gently took Cynthia's hand and walked to the only seats unoccupied, right in between Luffy and Usopp. Malaki idly noticed Nami's absence.

It was so quiet one could hear the wood creaking beneath their feet. It unnerved Malaki that even _Luffy_ was quiet.

That never happened...

The two sat down and Malaki had reached the limit of his patience when he saw his daughter look down, seemingly ashamed.

He gave them all a glare so cold, that an ice glacier would go green with envy.

"Is something wrong?" He asked dangerously, Cynthia seemed oblivious to it.

The others quickly looked away and resumed eating their food, except Luffy. Sanji bought two plates of toast and fish for the pair.

"Malaki." Luffy said in a grave tone.

Malaki turned to him with narrowed eyes, "Yes Captain?"

"That girl-" He began seriously, Malaki's eyes bore into Luffy. "-is ourships artist!" He shouted with a big smile. Everyone in the room fell over at the ridiculous change in tone.

The rest of breakfast was spent celebrating the new addition to the crew, though some were a bit hesitant at first. Cynthia warmed up to the others rather quickly, not that he was surprised. Despite her introverted nature she was a nice kid. While Malaki ate, his mind was elsewhere.

He had absolutely no idea how to entertain children.

He could just let her paint all day, but that made him feel like he was neglecting her. He didn't even know what she liked for Pete's sake! All he knew was that she was a passionate... painter...

He resisted the urge to slap himself, it was so obvious! He knew absolutely nothing about painting. Who better to teach him then a talented artist?

XxxxxX

Malaki was currently trying (and failing) to paint.

Who knew it was so damn hard?

He certainly didn't.

When he asked her to teach him how to paint, she was practically glowing with excitement. She pulled out a few brushes, some bottles of paint from god knows where, and some papare from Nami. Nami hadnt rejected because she was sick and confined to her room. When he entered he was greeted with the sight of her vomiting blood of all things.

He felt the need to slap himself, how could he have forgotten such a thing?

Thankfully, Vivi suggest they go to Drum Island, legendary for its doctors, and under her guidance we were currently headed there-but that's off topic.

Cynthia led him to the front of the deck and set up the equipment (Which, again, he had know idea where it came from.) for them. She showed him how to correctly stroke a brush, and the basics of depth and color dimensions, and off left him to his own devices.

Now, here they were, comparing each others work.

He broke from his train of thought when he heard giggles. He looked to his left and couldn't help bit smile at the happiness on Cynthia's face.

"So, what do you think?" He asked. She looked over him with a smile.

"Its nice, for a beginner."

His was of his inner world, though he left out his spirits, much to their displeasure. It was increasingly difficult and his form was rather crude, trees looked more metallic than anything else, but it was at least recognizable.

She looked over to him with awe. "Where is this place? It's beautiful..."

Malaka pursed his lips in thought, should he tell her. He shrugged, she was his daughter now.

"It's of my inner world." He said. She stared at him strangely.

"Inner world?" She questioned.

"Yes, it's a world that represents my mind and soul." She looked at him with surprise.

"That's... different..."

"It is, now lets see yours. Shall we?" He asked with a smile. Cynthia fidgeted nervously as she grabbed the tarp hiding her painting.

"Don't make fun of me, ok?" Malaki raised an eyebrow, but nodded regardless.

The moment she lifted the tarp his breath caught in his throat.

It was of two beings. One was essentially an angel of darkness. Its body was made up of wisps of darkness, and wings the crackled with embers of red flames. The most noticable feature, however, were the three red eyes on its blank face. In its arms was a child that radiated purity. The darkness held no evil intent, if anything, the shadows seemed to wrap around the child protectively. The child, a young girl, held the dark being closely, resting her head on its chest. They were in a jungle reminiscent to the one they had just left.

It didn't take a genius to figure out what they represented.

He looked over to her with surprise. "Cynthia..." He trailed off, unable to really say anything.

Her head bowed in sadness, "Its alright if you don't like it. I just tho-" She was silenced when she was enveloped in a tight hug. She looked at him with wide eyes.

He smiled down at her as he pulled her onto his lap. "It's beautiful, my little musume." he lightly kissed her on the forehead and hugged her a little tighter. "It's what I love about you."

The human girl froze after hearing the unfamiliar word come from her newly appointed fathers mouth. Her eyes widened to their full glory. Did…he just…say…

Did he just say he loves something about her? He had complimented her. Not a grudgingly, reluctant compliment either, but a true, genuine word of affection.

Suddenly, she didn't even notice the world around her anymore. No one existed but her and her father. For once in her life, she didn't think about her art or some mission. All she wanted on her mind was her and the grey-eyed man holding her.

No one had ever complimented her before. No one had ever given her praise. No one had ever said they loved _anything _about her. But Malaki just did. He didn't hate her. Well, at least he liked some things about her. And that was more than she had ever received in her entire life.

A foreign emotion suddenly bubbled up from the pits of her stomach. It was….strange. It was new. She wasn't sure she liked it, but she definitely wanted to act on it.

She wanted to make Malaki proud. Up until this point, she hadn't really known what the observant male thought of her….but now, seeing him give her praise and even hold her with a smile on his face….her wants rapidly changed. She wanted him to keep praising her. She wanted him to respect her, despite her faults.

She wanted him to _like _her.

She fell asleep in his arms, dreaming of ways to impress her father.

XxxxxX

Snow rapidly fell from the skies, rapidly approaching the icy waters as the Going Merry moved forward.

Malaki was outside, as we're the others, except Cynthia, who he had placed inside, and Nami, who was in no condition to move. He had learned one thing rather quickly.

He hated the cold.

Apparently, due to his reptilian genetics, he had a staggering weakness to the cold. He had to use his spiritual energy to keep his body from slowing to a crawl. He hated the fact that he was wasting energy that he'd end up needing later because he was warm-blooded. The constant drain on his power wasn't to bad, he could keep it up for days. He just didn't like the idea of having such a blatant weakness. But he was needed on deck, and despite this weakness, he still functioned normally.

He was cut from his musings when he heard Luffy and Usopp shouting.

Walking across the deck he sighed, why had he never gotten a coat? Bandages and a cloak weren't exactly winter clothing. ''What is it?''

''Who is that guy?'' Usopp asked and pointed over the railing to what looked like a green joker walking on water.

Malaki stared at the joker and waved a hand awkwardly. "Pretty cold, huh?"

He nodded and stared back at them with a blank gaze. ''It sure is''

''Yeah, it's cold, real cold'' Usopp also nodded.

The ship shook violently and the others looked towards the clown, who was now standing on top of massive round submarine with a small crows nest on the top of it emerging from the iced over waters. Malaki noticed Usopp and Luffy rolling across the deck, whereas, he was holding the railing with his claws, unwilling to waste any energy.

The two gained their bearings and looked at the ship in awe of its size and form.

''What the heck is that? A watermelon?'' Luffy pointed at the huge metal covered ship.

Malaki's eyebrow twitched, "Its safe to say that is a ship, captain."

Luffy frowned, "Oh..."

''Oi! What's going on-?'' Sanji barged from below deck and looked around.

Gazing indifferently at the surrounding Squad of green coated men with weapons aimed at us. Luffy lazily said that were being attacked.

''Are you lowlifes really pirates? You're just a bunch of weirdos'' A gruff, whiny voice said. ''Looks like there's five of you'' A fat male with a tin-plate armor and a cylinder-shaped jaw. And began to scold them on how "filthy" pirates were. All while he was munching on one of his pistols...

''What's this guy's problem? He's eating a gun!'' Luffy deadpanned at the sight in front of him.

Malaki shrugged, "Probably needs the iron..."

Wapol ignored the weird looks, "Do you have a Log Pose?"

Malaki sighed, thankfully Cynthia hadn't come up. He knew she was capable of protecting herself, but that didn't make it any better. "We don't, were about as lost as you are."

Wapol narrowed his eyes before shrugging, "Nonetheless, I can still raid your ship for a few treats."

The others glared at him, Luffy's though, was stronger than the rest. "Get the hell of my ship!" He shouted in rage. His rage only increased when Wapol started eating a part of Merry.

Malaki stared at the reincarnation of greed before raising a hand. The infamous red energy swirled in his palm and Wapol narrowed his eyes in confusion.

"What is th-"

"Cero." A beam of red energy cut him off, throwing him off the deck. Luckily the part of the ship he attempted to consume had fallen from his bolted mouth.

Everyone stared at him blankly and he shrugged. "He had it coming..." He trailed off and disappeared in a blur of Shunpo and reappeared behind two of the green coats, grabbing them by the neck, and throwing them in the direction of their king.

Zoro and Sanji sprung into action as well, knocking them off the ship with rapid kicks and slashes. Luffy, being as slow as he was, stood there with Vivi. Surprisingly, Usopp was fighting on par with Sanji, except he opted to punch them with his stringy limbs.

Meanwhile Malaki walked towards the end of the deck and glared at the nearby ship. Raising a hand as red spiritual pressure swirled into a solid form.

"Cero." He whispered and watched in delight as the crimson energy destroyed the masts and some of the deck, the rest was bathed in flames. Soldiers frantically scurried across the ship to battle the raging flames.

Malaki turned to the rest of the crew. "We should go before they can pursue us." The others nodded wordlessly as he joined them, silently steering the ship in the direction of Drum Island...

XxxxxX

Malaki sat on the railing, curiously staring out at the fog in the distance. Thankfully know one was on deck for the time being so he had the deck to himself.

The others had gone to sleep (Though, Cynthia had never even been awake.) after Vivi said that they would be a Drum island this evening. He decided to stay up and stand guard since he didn't want to sleep.

Igualda and Mokushiryu had asked if he wanted to train, but he declined. He just wanted to sit back and think.

He had alot on his plate nowadays.

He had two increasingly homicidal spirits inside his mind relentlessly beating him into the ground. Black blood that constantly tried to drive him to madness. And, most importantly, a daughter to take care of.

How the hell did things turn out this way?

He wasn't complaining or anything. Having a daughter, or even a son, was his dream. That way he could make up for the numerous failures in his lifetime. It was one of the reasons he maintained an A average in school, so he could get a good job, and as an effect make more money. The whole madness thing was a different deal entirely.

As much as he hated to admit it, he didn't hate the madness.

How could you hate yourself?

Yes, it may have become active through the blood in his veins, but it had always been there. His madness was a part of who he was, and as crazy as it was, he could accept it. That didn't mean he would let it control him, but he acknowledged it, and hoped that, one day, he could use it as easily as his other abilities.

He came up with a theory. If each of his powers manifested into separate entities (Igualda, his Hollow side , and Mokushiryu, his Shinigami side.), then it's quite possible that his madness would take a form eventually. This idea had unsettled his spirits, they weren't exactly fans of something that might kill them.

He shook his head Dismissively. He cross that bridge when he came to it.

He jumped off the railing and back on to the deck with the flutter of his cape. The necklace around his neck glowed before shooting into his hand, rapidly transforming into the massive buster sword he'd come to know so well. He stared at it and smiled. He liked this sword a lot. It couldn't do much, but what it could do was more than a little useful.

It was a vampire type Zanpakuto, meaning he wouldn't need to worry about energy very much. He would simply take it from an unfortunate victim.

He looked t at the ocean and his eyes widened a little when he saw a massive shadow in the distance. It was clearly the island they'd been waiting for.

He resealed the blade into its necklace form once more and walked across the deck. Opening the door to Nami's room he walked in.

Or he would have had something not walked into him, nearly knocking him down had he been a weaker man. Luckily, he was anything _but_ a man.

He looked down at the weight leaning into him and frowned when he saw the familiar orange head of hair.

"What are you doing out here Nami-san?" She looked up at him and his frown deepened.

Her hair was disheveled and greasy, some of her orange locks sticking to her glistening forehead. Her cheeks were cherry red, not from anger or embarrassment, and he skin was an unhealthy shade off pale. His skin nearly matched hers!

Nami's eyes widened when she realized who it was. "I-I..." She stammered.

"You should sleep, were nearly there and it isn't healthy for you to be out in the cold."

Nami frowned, "A-are you sure? We might be headed the wr-" She stopped when he put a hand on her shoulder.

"It's fine, really. You need some sleep before we get there and I need to wake up the others in preparation. So go, sleep for a little while the rest of us get ready." His tone was absolute, but soft, gently demanding she listen.

Nami frowned, but nodded anyways. "Alright..." She made her way back to bed and Malaki followed her closely, eyeing the sleeping crew mates.

Usopp and Luffy were, he shivered, _cuddling_ with one another while Sanji and Vivi were doing the same, though Sanji had a shit eating grin and a permenat blush. Cynthia, on the other hand, was leaning on the head of the bed, cutely sucking her thumb. Malaki's face twisted into one of disgust when he saw Sanji's hand twitch upwards suggestively.

'Pervert'

"Nami-san?" She was just pulling up her covers, but stopped, andlooked to him questioningly. "You may want to close your ears." Her eyes widened when he saw him spread his arms. And did as he said.

CLAP!

His hands smacked together with the combined force of a lightning bolt, jolting the others from their slumber.

"Lightning!/Lightning!" Luffy and Usopp only hugged each other closer. Vivi however...

"How the hell did you get there?!" Was having a fit as she rapidly hit Sanji, whose smile never fade as his face was punched inwards.

Cynthia just opened her eyes, showing know sign of even hearing the thunderous clap.

Malaki coughed into his hand and they all froze, looking up to him strangely. "We're nearly there. I advise we prepare to part with the ship..." They continued to stare at him. "..._now_."

They all clambered up from their positions and scurried out of the room quickly. Cynthia was the last out, taking her sweet time waking up and going, and leaving only Nami and Malaki in the room.

Malaki sighed as he walked to the door. He grasped the door knob and lightly pulled, leaving Nami in the darkness of her own room.

XxxxxX

Malaki was currently watching Usopp repair Merry's damage from the bolt-jawed eating machine. He'd insisted on helping, but the long-nosed boy refused, it was his job anyways.

Everyone else wasn't really doing anything. The island was only moments away, no longer a shadow. It was difficult to make out the shore line sometimes when it was all snow and ice.

The deck was covered in a healthy sheet of snow, much to Luffy's delight And Malaki's ire. Luffy had apparently taken it upon himself to start snowball fights with everyone. This ended with Malaki restraining the poor boy until he promised to stop, which he did.

Vivi came up from below deck with a frown and began ordering Sanji and Zoro, who was god knows where, to grab the plank so they can board.

It took some egging on, but Malaki eventually got Usopp across the flimsy peace of wood and onto the island with the rest. Nami was currently on Luffy's back and Zoro was left to watch the ship.

"Um, guys... I think we got a problem,,," Usopp trailed off. The others followed his gaze and there eyes widened when they saw dozens of villagers armed with rifles, all of which were pointed at them. Malaki shrugged, he sensed them some time ago.

"Stop right there pirates!" One of them yelled.

"You will leave here!" Malaki narrowed his gaze on the man, Dalton he believed his name was, and glared.

"We need a doctor."

"Nami's sick!" Luffy shouted, gesturing to said woman on his back.

Malaki noted the tense air and let his tongue flick out and his eyes widened at what he smelled.

Dalton smelt like an animal, though which on he didn't know. Everyone else was practically radiating fear And that was never a good thing.

There were barrage of insults thrown at us when one of the more jittery gunmen fired, just barely missing Cynthia.

The air grew dense and heavy with Malaki's hatred. "YOU. WILL._PAY!_" He hissed And everyone else was on board with him.

It wasnt long before another shot was fired, this time at Cynthia. Malaki reacted quickly, blurring in front of her, and letting the bullet pierce his chest. Malaki dropped to his knees as black blood leaked from the wound, he was to weak to even block a bullet with Hierro.

Cynthia and Vivi's eyes widened in horrifying realization. "Malaki!" They were at his side in moments.

Malaki raised a hand as he felt his spiritual energy heal his body and pushed the bullet out onto his open palm. He stood up and summoned Mokushiryu, eyes flaring with killing intent.

''No one will shoot without my orders! Is that clear!'' Dalton yelled as he looked at Malaki with genuine worry.

Malaki glared hatefully at the crowd before him, but sighed and resealed his Zanpakuto. "Please... Nami has picked up a disease and we require your help. This is the only place we know of that can cure her illness." He dropped to his knees and bowed. "Please help us!" Everyone looked at him with wide eyes. To actually _beg_ someone who shot you not moments before...

Dalton sighed wave a hand. ''Fine, I'll lead you to our village. Follow me'' And turned to the rest of the people. "And if any of you do something like that again, you will,be punished... _severely_." He growled out and the others were decidedly paler from the threat.

Malaki smiled despite the pain in his chest and followed Dalton, the rest of the crew did as well.

Dalton went on to explain how there was only one doctor on this island, a witch who lived on the top of the mountain in the center of the island.

"Wasn't this place famous for its doctors?" Vivi asked with a frown.

Dalton told them all it was in the past and that the island didn't really have a name so they just called it Drum island.

Halfway through the trip Malaki asked Luffy if he could carry Nami and Luffy agreed, much to Sanji's dismay.

The tight grip around his neck served to remind him he couldn't use Shunpo anymore or make any sudden movements, lest he harm Nami.

Walking to Dalton's home and putting Nami in a suitable bed to rest more. Malaki looked around until he felt someone behind him. He turned to the large male that lead them here. His hand was gripping a first aid kit. ''Forgive me for not introducing myself. My name is Dalton. I am this Island's Captain of the Guard. Please excuse our hostile reception.'' He looked at his chest curiously. "Are you alright, it's not everyday you see someone walk away from a gunshot like that and with the bandages..."

Malaki merely waved a hand dismissively, "I'll be fine, I heal rather quickly."

Dalton frowned, but said nothing else as the two approached the others

Vivi noticed the pair and walked up to Dalton. "What are those over there?" She gestured to the massive mountain I the distance.

''Those mountains are the Drum Rockies. You can see a castle atop the peak of the tallest, central mountain'' Dalton explained and offered us tea after the episode of Luffy and Usopp's snowmen.

When they all settled in, Malaki sighed before speaking up. "I know of the witch." The others looked at him curiously. "She lives at the top of those mountains, only coming done every once in a while to treat other people. How old is she? Like 140 or something like that?" There jaws dropped in shock, except Dalton, who narrowed his eyes at him.

''140! And why does she live all the way up there?'' Vivi shouted while looking at the window.

''How do you know that?'' The Guard asked him and Malaki shrugged.

"I know many things. One of them being she only visits her patients on a whim."

''And she's supposed to be a doctor!''

Malaki shrugged as he continued. "She's a great doctor. Nothing surpasses it except her greed. She'd take any valued objects, sentimental or otherwise, to sate it." The others ranted about how she ignores her 'Duty' as a doctor. He tuned the rest out and left to watch over Nami, whose health was rapidly deteriorating.

'She needs to be treated, and soon.'

Shaking his head from his grave thoughts, Malaki looked at Luffy, who was repeatedly slapping Nami in an attempt to wake her up. He grabbed his hand before he could do it again.

"She needs to sleep Luffy, at least until we get her some treatment."

Luffy frowned, but it quickly turned into a smile. "Lets climb the mountain and make the witch treat her!" He exclaimed with a grin.

''Are you insane!'' Usopp shouted. ''What are you trying to make Nami-san do!''

Luffy stared at him strangely, "We're obviously gonna carry her up the mountain." He stated.

''That will only worsen her condition!'' Vivi also tried to get some sense into him.

Malaki turned to them, his eyes were dead serious. "I agree with Luffy, we must go."

Sanji glared at him, "Are you stupid, it could kill her!" He shouted.

Malaki glared right back, "Her spirit is fading. If we don't go now, she will be dead by the end of the day." Everyone looked at him with wide eyes and pale expressions.

"W-what?" The blond cook managed to choke out. Malaki sighed as he looked at Nami.

He hadn't noticed it at first, but her spirit was fading, slowly losing its strength, he could barely feel it as it was. If he guessed it, she had until tomorrow before it was gone entirely, but the sooner they get there, the better.

"Her spirit is losing its connection to her body and is rapidly fading. If we stay she will die very soon, _unless_ we get her some treatment." He spoke gravely.

Vivi hesitantly nodded, "If what he says is true, then we should leave right now."

Malaki shook his head, "No, only Sanji, Luffy, Nami, and myself will be going." Usopp and Vivi glared at him.

"Why can't we go!?" Usopp shouted indignantly.

"Because you and Vivi are not strong enough to keep up with the rest of us. No offense, but both of you are physically weak." There shoulders slumped and threads bowed in shame. It was then that Dalton spoke up.

"I can take them up to the cable, but they'll be there by tomorrow." He offered.

The two nodded and Vivi smiled, "Thank you very much."

Malaki stared at Dalton for a moment. "Do you have any rope I can borrow?"

Dalton raised an eyebrow, "Rope? Why would you need that?" He asked.

"I have this horrible feeling that I'm gonna need it..." He trailed off awkwardly.

Dalton frowned, but nodded anyways, "Alright, wait here a minute." He walked away to get some rope.

XxxxxX

Malaki was currently jolting up the mountain without his cape. Nami was currently on his back, tightly gripping said cape as she tightened her grip on Malaki. Sanji and Luffy were just behind him as they trudged through the snow.

After getting some rope from Dalton the trio zoomed off towards the mountain with renewed vigor, not that Luffy's ever faded. Dalton didn't even have a chance to warn them...

"Keep on your guard, we don't know what's up here." Malaki told them.

Sanji scoffed as he kicked a weird... bunny... thing out of his way. "And _you_ make sure Nami's comfortable."

Malaki glanced over his shoulder worriedly, she was getting worse. She was conscious for now, but her whole face was red and sweaty. They hadn't told about the whole dying thing because they didn't want to freak her out. What were they gonna say? 'Oh, hey Nami, your gonna die really soon unless we get to an incredibly sketchy witch hwhy might not help us.'

Malaki suddenly stopped when he sensed something. Luffy and Sanji did as well, but the latter wasn't happy about it.

"What's the big idea! We need... to... go?" The words died in his throat when he saw what was in front of them.

Dozens of bunnies... Large, upright, possibly carnivorous, bunnies with glowing red eyes.

"...Oh shit..."

Malaki looked over to Sanji, "Run?"

He nodded as he put out his cigarette, "Definitely."

''Listen Malaki!'' This was the first time the cook used his name. ''Whatever happens, you can't attack them.''

"I know, clear me a path and Ill worry about Nami." The ground started to shake as the bunnies jumped forward with the intent to kill.

"There coming all at once!" Luffy shouted.

The duo ran forward, clearing a path for Malaki, who followed closely behind. Punches and kicks hit the bunnies in rapt succession as they ran higher up the mountain.

One tried to hit Malaki, but he used it as a stepping stone, hopping onto its head and leaping after the others, careful not to harm Nami.

''Sanji! We've got a path up ahead!'' Luffy shouted, gesturing to the gap in the bunny assault.

''Good! Go on then!''

They ran up the cliff and Malaki stopped for a moment to get a better hold of Nami. Luffy started to dance and showed his tounge at them, angering them further where they made another leap at us.

''Luffy! What the hell!'' Sanji yelled at him, Malaki was glaring as well.

''Keep running!'' Luffy yelled, completely ignoring Sanji.

They all stopped when they noticed they weren't being chased anymore.

"Did we lose them?" Luffy asked in confusion.

Sanji looking over Luffy's shoulder. ''No... we didn't'' Malaki looked in the direction he was staring and paled slightly when he saw more bunnies surrounding them completely, all of them on the hilltops around them.

"Crap..."

One bunny, larger than the rest, hopped forward a little and stared at them Before taking a deep breath.

"Rawwwwr!" It roared angrily.

Malaki narrowed his eyes as he walked forward a little. He channeled a little spiritual energy into his throat and reared his head, inhaling deeply.

Sanji stared at him confusedly, "What the hell are y-"

"**RRRROOOOAAAARRRR!**" He roared right back, scaring the crap out of everyone, bunnies included.

The largest bunny glared and started hopping, the others joined in as well.

Luffy laughed at them, "There so cute!" Malaki and Sanji's brow twitched in annoyance. Malaki's eyes widened when the ground started shaking.

"...Aw shit..."

Sanji noticed what was going to happen and his cigarette dropped from his mouth in shock.

''They're really doing it... those shitty rabbits!''

Luffy turned to us. ''Oi, Malaki, Sanji. What's wrong?''

''Yeah, Boss. What's going on?''

''Everyone run! It doesn't matter where, but get the hell out! They're causing an avalanche!'' Sanji shouted in terror.

''Those shitty rabbits! They're really gonna get it now, dammit!'' Sanji shouted angrily.

''W-W-What do we do?'' Luffy stuttered. ''W-What are we gonna do, Sanji? Malaki?'' His eyes widened when he noticed Malaki wasn't _there_.

He looked around and his jaw dropped when he saw him running _up_ the mountain, towards the rapidly falling snow.

"What ears you doing!?" Sanji shouted at him, but he was ignored by the rubber man.

Malaki glared at the oncoming avalanche hand stopped when he reached a small cliff. Raising a hand, he charged a cero, an attack that held pretty much all the energy he had left, and fired at the mass of snow, melting away an entire section of it.

"Come on you idiots, do you want to die!?" Malaki shouted.

The two ran towards him, but were cut off by The Alpha bunny from earlier, it's eyes gleaming angrily them.

"Guys!" Malaki cried, preparing to go after them, but Sanji stopped him.

"Stay there!" He yelled. "It's your duty to protect her, not endanger her!"

"We're gonna die!" Luffy shouted as he dodged a furry fist.

It was then, that Sanji did the most courageous thing any had ever seen.

He picked Luffy up, tossed him in the air, and kicked him far enough out of the way. Malaki reached his arm out and grabbed him, pulling him up to the ledge, but Sanji was so busy saving him that he didn't notice the avalanche about to ram him. Caught off-guard, he sunk into the snow.

"SAAAAAAANJIIIIII!"

XxxxxX

The avalanche roared passed them and…faded away. The snow calmed, the rubble was buried. Everything was silent.

Luffy tossed me his coat and hat and said, "I'm going to look for Sanji! You stay here!" He jumped into the snow With out another word.

Malaki said nothing as he wrapped Luffy's jacket around Nami, topping his cape.

He could feel the cold seeping into his bones. His spiritual energy was barely even staving it off. Nami was faring no better than he was, if not worse.

About an hour later Luffy returned, carrying an unconscious Sanji. Luffy was covered in scrapes and bruises, while Sanji's body was nearly purple, and his right hand was mangled and crusted with dry blood.

Luffy opened his mouth to say something, but all that came out was a choked gag as he fell on his face. Malaki's eyes widened when he saw dozens of slash marks on his back, all frozen over with blood.

Malaki pulled the rope from his pocket and looked at the three and back at the rope.

"Fuck."

XxxxxX

Malaki trudged forward through the snow. On his back, Sanji, Nami and Luffy were tied to his back in that respective order.

He noticed a small bunny in the snow trying to dig out a huge paw. Malaki frowned and approached them.

He was scratching the snow in agony with his claws bleeding. He let out small howls of sadness and was crying. He turned and saw Malaki heading towards him. His sadness became anger. He growled at him and covered the giant paw with his body, ready to defend itself.

Malaki just smiled at the little guy and reached down. He covered his head in fear, afraid he was going to hurt him.

Malaki pulled as hard as he could on the giant paw and yanked the giant rabbit out of the snow.

When the little one saw what he did, he squealed with delight. The Alpha was dazed and stunned, but alive no less.

Malaki patted the little one on the head and kept going. He idly noticed the little bunny hug his dad as the father watched him walk away.

He would do anything to save his father to...

XxxxxX

Malaki glared at the figures before him

On a fur covered hippo was Wapol, the green jester, and a dark-skinned guy with an afro...

... On his _hands_...

"Wait, you're not strawhat!" He said, just realizing this.

"No, but he's carrying the strawhat." The afro man said.

Malaki looked at the jester. "Hey, you're that guy I shot with a laser,"

"He is a part of that strawhat's crew. I remember him." The jester said.

Wapol thought for a minute. "It seems it's my lucky day! You their boy, I have a proposition for you! You give me the unconscious Straw hat, and I may forgive you shooting me!" He said with a big smile.

The jester stepped in and said, "It would be in your best interests if you did! We could even give medical treatment for the other two! They look like they're in critical condition. We'll be glad to help them, right Wapol?" He asked eagerly.

"I'll think about it. But first, give me the Straw hat!" He said.

Malaki school his head, "I'm sorry, but I can't betray my captain. Just as you can't betray your king. Now if you'll excuse me, I must press on."

As he walked toward the mountain, he heard Wapol shout, "I have a law that fits this situation! Any who do not obey the king shall be executed! Chess, Kuromarimo, punish them all immediately!"

"Must we really?" The jest... Err... Chess said.

"You heard the king!" The other guy, Kuromarimo, said.

"Damnit!" Malaki cursed and began to run towards the mountain.

"KUROMARIMO SURPRISE!"

Malaki dodged as he punched downward with a spiked boxing glove. He ran faster and began seeing arrows impale the ground around him. One of them hit shoulder-blade, narrowly missing his luggage, but he pressed on defiantly.

As he kept running, not even dealing with his injuries a huge pair of teeth almost eating him seemed to appear out of no where. He jumped back and saw he had some sort of powder on him that made him look just like snow.

The other two appeared right next to me with their weapons drawn.

"It pains me to do this, but I'm afraid this is the end for all of you!" Chess said.

"You can't compete with warriors of the snow you stupid pirate!" Kuromarimo said with glee.

He couldn't dodge them without hurting his crew mates, he was afraid this was the end.

Two giant rabbits appeared and smacked the two guys out of the sky, saving him! The two fell to the ground in shock at their new foes.

Malaki recognized one of them as the Alpha bunny he pulled out of the snow. It even had the little baby bunny clinging to its back.

"Did those Lopin just defend that guy?" Afro man said in disbelief.

"That's impossible! Lopin don't form bonds with humans! They're nothing but wild beasts!"

The baby and the alpha looked at him and Malaki bowed thankfully.

"I thank you." Was all he said before running off towards the mountain.

XxxxxX

Malaki stared up at the mountain before and repressed the urge to cry in pain.

'Can I make it?'

He gained no reply, his inner world lost its connection after he reached the bare minimum levels of spiritual energy.

His body was covered in bruises and cuts, thankfully his black blood still worked to some extent, limiting the wounds to just his skin.

His body was wearing down. He only survived by luck alone, the Lopin had come to save him.

He grabbed part of the wall and tightened his grip a little.

"This is gonna be hell." Was all he said before he started climbing.

XxxxxX

Damn

That was all he could describe it as.

His claws were beginning to wear down and his eyes bleed because small slivers of rock were cutting his eyes. He ignored the pain, forcing himself to move forward for his crew.

XxxxxX

Around two hours into the climb, he could hear his claws chipping away, his black blood barely managing to hold him together.

He couldn't stop, he couldn't cry I out in pain, that's what his crew meant to him.

XxxxxX

Malaki's claws were nothing but bone. The flesh around them had been torn some time ago. Even some of the bones were reduced to jagged spikes, frozen over with blood that painted the side of the mountain. He kept going...

"For my nakama..." He whispered.

XxxxxX

His spiritual pressure no longer supported his body. He could feel his body turning off, system by damaged system. His blood flow decreased to the point where he could no longer feel his heart beating.

"For my nakama..." He whispered.

XxxxxX

His hands and feet were beyond recognition and he resorted to slamming them into the mountainside to keep climbing. He didn't look down, nor did he look up, he just kept going. His vision was non-existent anyways, and his brain was starting to turn off.

"For my nakama..." He whispered.

XxxxxX

It was so cold. So cold…

His injuries was staining the snow black. I gripped a part of rock that didn't feel like a part of the mountain. It felt flat.

'I... did... it...'

I struggled to pull myself up and fell… on flat ground.

He crawled forward, unable to even see where he was when he heard sound Of feet.

"Please..." He coughed up a glob of black blood. He could hear a gasp and something warm touching his face. "... Help them..." His head dropped into sweet unconsciousness.

XxxxxX

In Malaki's Inner world Igualda and Mokushiryu were freaking out.

"He's gonna die!" Mokushiryu yelled.

"I know that! It's why I have to start this early!" Igualda yelled as dozens of chains shot out of his hands and into the ground.

The skies darkened as the sea suddenly started spewing water onto the chains.

"What the fuck is goin on!" Igualda cried. Mokushiryu was about to yell at him, but was cut off by an explosion of black energy.

The duo sat up groggily and stared at the smoke billowing from the blast zone.

"Any idea what happened?" Igualda asked and the Zanpakuto shook her head.

"**I do...**" There eyes snapped wide open when they heard a demonic voice echo from the column of smoke. As the smoke faded they saw a figure standing proudly at its center. It's form, however, was obscured by a translucent red sphere that radiated madness...

The other spirits paled In realization.

"Fuck." They said simultaneously. The new occupant grinned madly.

"**Fuck indeed..****.**"


	14. Chapter 14: New Faces

Thanks for the reviews guys! I'm gonna be expanding on the spirits in his head later on, but his newest voice will be explained in this chapter!

New Faces

XxxxX

Darkness.

This was all he could see.

Darkness, familiar yet unfamiliar, was upon him. Thick and heavy, yet smooth and comforting.

He could feel the cold tendrils of shadow caressing his skin in a soft embrace, lulling him into a serene calmness of the soul.

**Malaki.**

He jolted slightly, but calmed immediately. The voice was very soft, like an angels, but something in the tone suggested something entirely different.

**Malaki.**

He looked around For the source of the voice, but found nothing. It echoed from every direction.

**Malaki.**

Just as it spoke, a bright red light flashed his eyes, making them close as he covered his eyes with his arm. When he felt the light fade, he peeked over his arm curiously.

A figure stood before him, illuminated by the red light from before. He couldn't make out much of it, though, their was one feature he noticed.

His eyes, or rather, the _number_ of eyes.

_Three_. _Red_. _Eyes_. All of which were locked onto him with a... _loving_ gaze?

He tensed as it came closer, and soon realized why he couldn't make out any features.

There were none.

It was just a burning mass of darkness molded into a humanoid form.

Strangely enough, he didn't feel afraid of the creature as it neared him. Just like he wasn't afraid when it embraced in a gentle hug as warm wispy fingers ran through his dark locks. He relaxed into the embrace, the lonely child in him loving the contact.

"Who are you?" He whispered softly, not bothering to even glance at its face

**I'm a part of you.**

He frowned, "A part of me?" It nodded and its smile faded. He nearly gasped in surprise when a single tear rolling down its cheek.

**I want us to be whole.**

He just stared at her, to stunned to speak. The sadness and longing in its voice struck a cord in his heart. Before he could say anything, they both tensed at the familiar tug of the mind.

**Its time to wake up now.**

"Will I see you again?" He blurted out without thinking as he looked worriedly at the being, who seemed happy at the worry lacing his tone. It tightened the embrace ever so lightly.

**We'll meet again soon... I promise.**

He hugged the shadowy mass softly, and he could feel its surprise. It didn't get a chance to comment before everything was once again enveloped in darkness.

XxxxX

Malaki's eyes slowly opened, but he made no move to sit up, to deep in thought about his newest encounter. He stared at the ice encrusted ceiling thoughtfully.

Was that real?

He had a feeling it was...

He ran his hand over his body, checking for anything, and was mildly annoyed when he found that , not only were his clothes missing, but the only thing covering him were a thin set of bandages around his waist.

He sighed in annoyance and wiggled all four of hi- wait.

Wait one fucking minute.

_Four?_

He got out of the bed, throwing the sheets to the side and scrambled for a mirror. Finding a mirror attached to the door, he looked himself over.

He almost wish he hadn't.

**(AN: I'm going to give you all the characteristics. Some people are getting confused by the changes going on, so I'll just give a full description.)**

He was still the same six and a half feet, his eyes were steel-gray with flecks of black and slitted pupils. His mouth hid a row a sharpened fangs, the canines being larger then the rest and a long, forked tongue painted a sickly black.

His skin, however, was _alabaster white_ and his eyes were lined with a thick black ring with a single, slightly curved, sickle going down two inches towards the nose on the bottom of each eye. His fingers were clawed, his knuckles looked more pronounced. His hair was black, a perfect shade of midnight. It started off spiked, but flattened just below the hairline on the back of his head where a design of three, white, vertical aligned eyes with red pupils were. He didn't have toes, but rather, he had four, black, scythe-like _talons_ on his foot, three in the front, and the fourth being on the heel of his foot.

He just stared...

And stared...

And _stared_..

If he was even slightly human before, he _definitely_ wasn't now.

"So your awake..." An elder, but distinctly female voice drawled. His neck to source of the voice, which happened to be right _next_ to his bed.

A women whose head didn't match her body, which was much younger. She had near-white hair and an older, wrinkled face. Her teenage body, however, was covered by a white t-shirt with pink flower print on it stopping mid waist and a purple blazer with two yellow stripes. Also there was a naval ring along with purple skinny jeans with strange pink designs on the left leg.

She was Dr. Kureha, the witch of Drum island.

He nodded to the witch, inwardly cursing his own lack of attention.

The women stared at him with a grin, "You gonna get your close-not that I'm complaining or anything."

He remembered his own lack of attire and felt his blood rushing to his face When the witch laughed at him.

"Strange blush you got there."

He looked at her strangely, "What do you mean?" Her grin widened and he felt like prey under a hawks gaze.

"Your blush, it's gray." Malaki froze.

His blush was gray?

_'That actually makes sense. Paper white and oil black_ would _make gray.'_

"Can I have my clothes? It's rather cold if you haven't noticed." The witch just chuckled and motioned to the small chest on the table next to her.

Malaki nodded absently as he took his belongings from the chest and got dressed. He sighed in relief as he felt the familiar hum of spiritual pressure echo through him. He looked to the witch and remembered something.

"Where are the others?" He asked.

The witch grinned slightly, "They're ru-"

"MEAT!"

"AAAAHHHH!"

Both of their eyebrows twitched in annoyance.

"Never mind..." He turned around and walked towards the sound

"Wait." He turned to the witch in confusion. He paled (If that's possible anymore) instantly when she raised a vial of black liquid.

"We need to talk later." He nodded hesitantly before walking out.

After a few minutes of wandering he heard what sounded like whimpering from a nearby closet. Quietly tip-toeing (Or would it be tip-clawing?) to the closet he carefully opened the door, and came across an interesting sight. Namely a terrified Chopper whimpering like a child in the corner.

Suddenly his eyes snapped up to him and both froze, unsure of how to react.

Taking a deep breath, Malaki stepped forward, ignoring the tensed form of the Devil Fruit user.

"Thank you." The reindeer blinked in confusion. "You saved my life. Had it not been for you and that woman, I and my friends would be dead. If there is anything I can do just ask."

The reindeer hybrid looked momentarily stunned before doing some strange dance, a blush apparent on his face. ''I don't need anything from humans like you'' He then went angry at me. ''I'm not happy at all!'' Despite what he said, the joyful smile gave him away.

Malaki stared at him blankly, "Do I look even _remotely_ like a human to you?"

To Chopper's credit, he did blush embarrassedly. "Ummm... What _are_ you then?"

Malaki paused. What _was_ he?

He wasnt any known race... Was he? He thought back to the fact that he was an Arrancar given a physical ,flesh and blood, body, but that had changed when his blood turned black.

Black Blood, blood imbued with madness made to resonate with the soul of its host. Perhaps that was what defined him. He did have the madness, he had even consumed human souls, what did that make him?

He was a Shinigami.

He was a Hollow.

He was a Kishin egg.

The idea made sense really. He had madness and a hidden desire to consume human souls. Although he hated to admit it, the souls he had consumed while a Hollow had left a sweet taste in his mouth.

He was the only of his kind, unique, it was easily the greatest gift as it was a curse.

He was powerful and that power would only continue to grow from what little he understood. He was arguably immortal to his Arrancar origins said anything.

At the same time meant he was no longer related to his birth parents, that stung mor then anything else. He had no mother or father, no kin to relate with. _If_ he was immortal, everything and everyone around would whither and die while he remained, alone and untouched. He would have to watch as Cynthia faded away until she was dust on the wind.

"I am the last of my kind. I am alone." He whispered sorrowfully, but for an entirely different reason.

Chopper paused, a strange look crossing his face.

"Alone..." He trailed off weakly and locked gazes with Malaki, a silent message passing between the pair.

Chopper's eyes suddenly widened, "Oh! I meant to ask you if I could... Well if you'd let me..." He murmured the last part.

Malaki frowned, "What was the last part?"

"Could I, well..."

Frown deepening, he leaned own to Chopper. "Could you say that again."

"Can I study your blood!" He suddenly shouted.

"..."

"..."

"Umm... what...?"

Chopper fidgeted under Malaki's questioning stare, unsure of how to continue.

"Well, when we were treating you, we noticed that your blood was black, something that should be impossible." His face straightened out as he slipped into his 'doctor' persona. "This should be impossible because black blood is a sign that you have toxins in your blood stream. Too much iron is suppose to kill you, but when I put your blood under a microscope you _far_ from dead." He paused to catch his breath.

"Your blood cells were packed with so much iron that they turned black. Yet despite this your cells were unstable-more so then human cells. Your blood should be solid as the iron in your blood, but the unstabability of your cells prevented this by stretching them out. This made your blood thicker and more resilient from damage." Chopper sighed sadly and his eyes flashed with annoyance, "I would have tested further, but by then I was dealing with the other patients."

Malaki stared at him, processing the information As quickly as he could.

"I'll allow you to research my DNA... On two conditions."

Chopper took a shaky step back when Malaki grinned, showing off his sharpened fangs...

XxxxxX

Malaki was at the door to Nami's room, and from the racket in there, the others as well. Chopper was hanging on his back, stubby arms wrapped around his neck, and sleeping peacefully. The stubborn little thing just jumped on him and wouldn't let go. When he asked the reindeer _why_ he on his back, he just said "His hair smelt nice", definitely not strange at all.

Malaki took a deep breath before opening the door.

What he found was... humoring.

Sanji with his head firmly planted into the wall and an irate witch stood behind him, with an aura that radiated death.

"Your an idiot." Malaki said as he entered the room. The others just stared at him strangely.

"Malaki...?" Nami whispered questioningly.

Malaki nodded, "I've undergone the another stage of my transformation. I don't know how many I have, but expect more in the nearby future." It was really a guess, but for all he knew, it could be true.

"..."

They all just kept staring at him and it was beginning to annoy him. He growled and suprises himself at how feral it sounded, the others jumped at the sound.

"Stop staring at me." He hissed through gritted fangs. Luffy was staring at him the whole time, unaffected by his demeanor.

"Did... did you really climb the mountain with all of us with you?" He whispered guiltily.

Malaki sighed, "Yes, and there's nothing to worry about so le-" Luffy jumped up and glared at Malaki.

"Nothing to worry about?!" He hissed at Malaki. "You almost died and its my fault! I'm your captain! It should have been me carrying you guys up!" He was right up in Malaki's impassive face. "I'm the captain! Its my job to take care of you! Not the other way around!"

Malaki narrowed his eyes, "You did nothing wrong you childish idiot!"

Luffy's glare intensified, "I failed you as a captain again!"

"It's our duty to protect you!"

"And you almost died because of it!"

"Im fine!"

Sanji, realizing where this was leading, intervened. "I think that's eno-"

"No your not! I GOT YOU TURNED INTO A MONSTER!" The moment he said it, he knew he made a mistake.

"..."

Luffy took a hesitant step forward, "Malaki..."

"Leave me alone." His voice was calm, but his eyes betrayed his feelings.

Luffy gripped his shoulder, "Im so-" He was cut off by a fist to the face that sent him spiraling into the wall.

"LEAVE ME THE FUCK ALONE!" Malaki snarled and he stormed out of the room, Chopper barely managed to keep his grip.

The others just sat there, to stunned to do anything. Luffy himself was leaning against the damaged wall, holding his broken and bleeding nose.

XxxxX

Malaki _hated_ this feeling!

It reminded him how damaged he was-the fact that he was so used to being considered inhuman it no longer effected him. Even in home dimension, people considered him a freak because of the coldness he had.

His anger had long since faded into a terrible numbness of the heart. After all, how could he be angry with Luffy when what he said was true?

He was a monster-a freak that didn't deserve to exist. Yet, at the same time he wanted to be normal, at least normal enough that he could give Cynthia the human lifestyle she so rightfully deserved.

But _No_! He had to become more of an abomination then he already was-and right when his life was looking up for once!

His eyes grew glossy as he choked a sob, tears streaming down his pale face. The worst of all would be when Cynthia saw him.

He could already imagine her beautiful face sneering at him in disgust, affronted by the thought that she was even breathing the same air as the monster in front of her.

He was cut from his musings when something prodded his side. His gray eyes turned to the reindeer next to him.

Chopper looked at him worriedly, "A-Are you ok?" He stuttered.

Malaki sniffed and wiped a few tears away With his arm. "No." He whispered weakly.

Chopper fidgeted for a moment before he spoke up. "Do you want to talk about it?"

Malaki gave him a sidelong glance, "Why would you care?" He was mildly surprised by the sudden determination in the fellow non-humans eyes.

"B-Because..." He paused. "Because I'll tell you about me."

"I already know about you." Was what he wanted to say, but he found he couldn't. Sighing Malaki bought up his knees to his chest in an unusual display of weakness. "Where do you want me to start?"

Chopper smiled, showing of his large 'Choppers'. "The beginning is the best place."

With an in characteristic snort he began to tell the story of his life, with the exception of the whole 'Not from this dimension' issue. He was surprised when the little furry enveloped him in a hug eerily reminiscent to Cynthia's, which he returned(though he had no idea why).

In return he regaled him with his own story, and he felt for the little guy. Death of loved ones was a painful thing, especially when your the direct cause of it. He could see how heavily he blamed himself and it saddened Malaki how alike they were.

"This was... Nice."

"It was, wasn't it?" Malaki said and offered a kind smile to the reindeer in his lap. How he got there, he would never know.

"Yes." Yes, the idea of mutual counseling was suddenly more appealing to him.

A content silence encompassed the pair as they stared out over the snowy plains. Malaki liked this landscape now that it no longer effected him the way it had before, not that he knew _why_ it didn't effect him anymore.

His eye caught something moving in the distance and narrowed his gaze. He felt the familiar prickling sensation as he pushed spiritual energy into his eyes, enhancing his ocular vision.

He made out four figures, two men by their stature and and one fat one atop a large woolly hippo.

Oh shit.

"Chopper, I need you to go warn the others that were about to be attacked."

His eyes widened, "But wh-"

"_Please_, Chopper. This is very important. I want you to tell them that the hungry bastard from earlier is back, ok"

Chopper looked conflicted, but nodded. "Alright." With that he hopped off his lap and scurried off.

Malaki stood up and sighed tiredly as he looked over where they were coming from. "I'll kill them real quick and go take a nap." Was all he said before he leaped off the end of the building.

He unsealed his Zanpakuto and Shunpo'd only moments before impact, landing safely on the ground.

His widened when felt a spike in spiritual pressure, he ra-

"Sorry to say Fucker, but your mine!"

Malaki barely missed the beam of crimson energy directed at him. He turned to the source with narrowed eyes.

He had long dark hair, long side burns that go down to his jaw, and he also had a faded goatee. His eyes portray an evil, but laid back character. His skin was tan-ish, and he was about 6'1 ft and slender. He wore dark gray jeans, also two white blade-like bone along his jawline that instantly marked him as an Arrancar. A light V-neck shirt covered his chest, over which he wears a dark gray jacket that has a high collar.

The most noticeable thing was his weapon.

He carried a six-foot long, three-foot wide, silver butcher knife with a long black handle. It was a strange reminder of his own really.

"Tch." The black haired Arrancar said, "So you're the kid that boss wants so damn bad, huh?" The Arrancar spoke up as he looked at him.

Malaki remained still, but the unsealing of his Zanpakuto and narrowed eyes gave him away.

The Arrancar eyed the Zanpakuto and grinned widely, "Never fought someone with a sword like mine. Guess that's about to change, but before we start... What's your name."

Malaki rose an eyebrow, "Your here to capture me and you don't know my name?"

He huffed, "Ain't my fault I ignored him. Damn bastard talks to much."

Malaki sweat dropped before sighing in exasperation. "My name is Seras D Malaki."

He smirked, "Devat Rimmersaw, seventh trial of Evoultion."

Malaki frowned, "Trial of Evoultion?"

Devat scoffed, "You don't need to worry, you'll know who we are once I get your ass back to base in a cage."

Malaki had expected something along those lines but he was sure he could force something out of the Arrancar one way or another. "Then perhaps I should force it out of you," He said as he grip tightened on Mokushiryu's hilt and slightly bend his knees in preparation for a battle stance.

Devat dissapeared in a loud buzz of _Sonido _which caused Malaki's eyes to widen. He was only just in time to raise his Zanpakuto in order to block the horizontal slice coming from behind him. Turning his head he saw Devat grinning wildly.

"Great!" He started. "Your just the kinda guy I want!"

Malaki smirked his opponents statement."Your strong, and just as fast. This should be a perfect test of strength."

As those words left Malaki's mouth he disappeared with a soundless Hinaku and applied the same tactic Devat had just used. Reappearing behind Devat he slashed at him vertically so as to force him to have to turn around to actually block the hit. Devat however didn't seem to have trouble keeping up as he turned around, and blocked the hit.

Malaki leaped forward with a slightly manic smile, Devat mirrored the expression from across.

And so both of them dissapeared in a simultaneous Hinakuand Sonido_._ Less then a second later the sound of metal hitting metal could be heard throughout the area and a large explosion caused a crater to erupt beneath the two of them. Snow flew everywhere around them and the stones of the nearby building had small cracks forming in it.

As they continued to trade blows Devat had a hard time figuring out Devat's battle style. He fought one-handed, as Malaki himself did. Devat's unoccupied hand remained by his side, tensed in preparation. Devat fought with vicious and deadly attack patterns. He seemed to try to create openings and Malaki was fighting in a similar fashion.

Already several small cuts and bruises had formed mainly on his arms and healing at a slower rate then usual.

Devat's eyes widened as the man who had just as Malaki started pushing towards Devat harder, causing Devat to be pushed back slowly. Realising what would happen if this went on for much longer he raised his other arm and pointed his open palm at the white skinned male. As a large red orb started to form in his palm, he smirked.

Malaki's grin never left his face but he did seem to realise the situation he was in as he instantly withdrew his sword and jumped back several yards. Devat, who continued charging his Cerolaughed maniacally as the Ceroreleased and sped towards Malaki, the bright red light obscuring him from view.

"Take that!" He shouted out, continuing his laughter all the while.

His laughter died down when he saw Malaki, gashes leaking black blood all over his arms, and his Zanpakuto held firmly in front of him.

Devat grinned at his pitiful state. "Haven't you noticed you ain't healin'?"

Malaki's grimaced in pain as he checked himself over. The gashes along his arm weren't closing up and his blood kept seeping out uncontrollably.

Devat chuckled at Malaki's expression, "My passive ability Infinito Corriente **(Infinite stream) **makes any wound my baby here-" He patted his cleaver affectionately. "-excessively bleed and pretty much impossible to heal. Boss was the only person I've ever seen shrug it off, so your fucked buddy." He finished with a grin.

Devat's smile died on his lips when he was suddenly forced to block a flurry vicious slashes with his sword, leaving small gashes along the blade as the Espada lunged forward to try to strike a punishing blow into Malaki's abdomen, only for Malaki to disappear using Shunpo. "I never thought I'd fight someone who was as fast as me," Devat complimented, using Sonido to appear behind Malaki, his hand striking forward to smack the black-haired Kishin Egg.

Malaki dodged to the side, spinning with a snarl. "Is this the best you have to offer?" he taunted as he swung Mokushiryu. His slowly developing reiatsu sense alerted him of Devat's decreasing spiritual pressure, and his smirk grew into a smug smile. "Oh, would you look at that? Your almost out of gas!"

Grimmjow gave a manic grin. "Who cares about that?! I'll just get stronger dipshit! " He parried a slash and retaliated with a kick, which was deflected by Ichigo's left hand.

Ichigo jumped back, and predictably, Grimmjow followed. With a smirk, he fueled Mokushiryu with spiritual energy until it was bathed in deep black flames and swung his buster sword down with both hands, bellowing "Die!"

Devat was too close to dodge, and he didn't have enough time to counter. All he could do was block. He threw his Zanpakuto up to cover his face as the fiery black blade of destructive energy struck him. He silently began charging a Cero.

Malaki grinned as he pressed further down when heard a cracking sound, and broke out into a mad cackle when he saw a large crack forming in the center of Devat's Zanpakuto.

_'__Now!__' _Devat twisted his hand, a red orb held in his palm, his raging eyes narrowed in concentration. "Cero!"

The highly concentrated beam of blood red energyoverwhelmed a portion of Malaki's Zanpakuto and caught him unaware as he was hit in the chest. He jumped back and fell to one knee in midair, still supported by the platform of reiatsu that kept him up in the air with Devat. Most of Malaki's bandages had been destroyed, and his upper torso was burned quite badly, with some blisters already forming. '_Son of a bitch, that hurt!'_

However, Devat did not emerge unscathed either. He had been hit dead-on by Malaki's attack, which had been boosted by Mokushiryu's vampiric abilities. His forearms had been deeply sliced and burned in several places from the debree, and even then some of the blast had hit his chest, burning both him and destroying part of his shirt and coat. His arms had numerous burns quite a bit to move, much to his displeasure. What _really_ shocked him was the state of his Zanpakuto.

The massive cleaver was a shell of its former self. The force of Mokushiryu and the spiritual pressure acting on it shattered the top half of the blade, contributing to Devat's injuries.

_'I'll need a month or two of rest to fix this up… _or_ use my Resurreccion.' _"Well, fuck. You're better than I thought, bastard."

Malaki straightened, gripping his Zanpakuto tightly. "So are you." he admitted. '_He hasn't gone Resurreccion yet. If he does, I'll be forced to use the madness since I don't have my Bankai yet.'_

Malaki sighed sadly at his predicament,_ 'This needs to end now or I might really die, even if I have to use _it_'_

"Why don't we go all out?!" Devat asked with grin As he raised his broken Zanpakuto

Malaki smirked, "That's just what I was thinking!"

A red aura surrounded both of them, though Malaki's was condensing into a sphere, whereas Devat's burned like a fire.

"Cut 'em up, Carnicero!" His aura abruptly detonated outwards. Malaki's own aura protected him from the blast like it was nothing.

"Hahaha! This is more like it!" Malaki's eyes snapped to the source of the sound And saw Devat in all his Hollow-like glory.

He was still wearing the same clothing from before, but his right arm is covered in a white, bone-like material. At the end of his arm, the hand was replaced by a massive white butcher knife with a silver edge. The lower half of his face was shielded by a sinister mask with blade-like jaw bones and a row of sharpened teeth. His eyes were black with glowing red irises.

Devat gazed at the translucent sphere surrounding Malaki. It had three vertical eyes, bone tipped wings, a long tail, a pair of menacing backward-pointing horns, and a void-like hole below a fanged smile.

Malaki was confused. The last time he had entered this state, he lost all semblance of sanity, but now it was like it was working with him. He could still feel his blood boil like molten lava, but it was more invigorating then maddening.

'**I won't hurt you anymore.**'

Malaki's eyes widened in shock, that voice...

"Let it begin!" He was snapped out of his musings by Devat's declaration.

Devat charged him, not using sonido, but just ran at him. His arm began to glow red as his speed increased and Malaki prepared himself.

'**You know what to do.**'

Malaki listened to the soothing voice and calmly s closed his eyes. Devat saw this as he got closer and frowned.

"You accepting your death already, huh?! Finally realized its pointless?!"

Malaki ignored his taunts and focused on the torrents of energy in his body. He could feel the separate stems in his body leading to the root, the center of his hollow hole was.

"Get serious you coward! Or I might just kill ya!" Devat snarled as he ran his free hand along his cleaver, smearing blood along its edge.

Malaki's eyes suddenly snapped open as he bit down on his forefinger and raised it to Devat as a sphere of black energy started forming.

Devat grinned, "Fuck yeah!" He leaped into the air, his cleaver arm raised and encompassed with red spiritual energy.

Just as they were inches away from each other, there attacks released simultaneously.

"Bloque Que Taja **(Chopping Block)**!" Devat's arm blurred as hundreds of red crescents were released from the cleaver.

"Gran Rey Cero **(Great Kings Cero)**!" Malaki cried as a massive black torrent of swirling black energy burst from the sphere like an ocean.

The following clash of energies created a shockwave that roar across the island, bathing the pair in fiery spiritual residue.

XxxxX

Sorry my stuff is shorter then usual, but writers block is a bitch I have yet to tame.


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